Darkness is Upon us
by Michelle P
Summary: On a darkened planet with a haunting secret, SG1 get more than they bargained for, and when Jonas begins to experience frightening flashes, the team finds out that some secrets are best kept underwraps. COMPLETE! Slightly revised.
1. A Frightening Beginning

Disclaimer: Own nothing, this is solely for enjoyment.

**Rating: **PG

**Summary: **After gating to a world where it always seems to be dark, SG-1 is surprised to find that once they are through the gate that it will not start up again to dial back home. As they wait for Carter to try to find a way to fix the gate, strange things begin to happen including disembodied voices, and misty apparitions appearing to one or two team members at a time. This world is holding some dark secrets that even SG-1 is afraid to encounter but, they must face their fears so the gate will allow them to return home to the SGC.

**Extra note:** this fic includes Jonas, not Daniel but, who's to say that the esteemed Dr. Jackson will not visit his friends while they are in turmoil?

**A/N: Thanks for the heads up on awkward sentencing. I thought I'd fixed all of those when I reposted, guess I missed a few. Thanks again, and if you see any others while going through, feel free to let me know and I'd be happy to repair them! I tried to fix up the beginning, I agree that it felt forced and quick. Therefore, I attempted to work magic on it. Hope my attempts worked!**

**Chapter 1: A Frightening Beginning.**

The gate exploded in a river of blue that shimmered in the darkness.The team of SG-1 stepped through and stopped almost instantly. It was dark, threateningly dark, and cold. A wild wind danced through the air, hitting the team with enough force to snatch their breath away and cause them to gasp. As the gate shut down, the wind stopped, leaving only the haunting silence of their new _'playground'_ and the invading darkness. Not a grand place to be if claustrophobia was one of your weaknesses.

SG-1 cast fleeting glances around the area, and could see nothing through the haze of black that wrapped itself around them. To be truthful, the place felt downright creepy, it felt as though something was watching them from all angles, waiting to attack. This wasn't a feeling that they had grown accustomed to, and it certainly wasn't one they liked to have _forced_ upon them.

Colonel O'Neill turned a complete circle in his spot, the movement slow and cautious, his gun raised, ready to fire, but he saw nothing worth wasting a clip of ammunition on. O'Neill lowered his weapon and sauntered back to where SG-1 had emerged, rummaging in his pack for a flashlight as he went. He was certain he'd brought one, but finding it would be another story. He knew there was one in his pack _somewhere_ though.

Not finding anything in his search, he sighed and gave up. He squinted into the dark, and could just make out the shadows of the rest of SG-1, each member shifting uncomfortably in the deathly silence. Detecting the uneasiness of his team, he decided to ease the tension a bit, in the only way he knew _how._

"Well, this is welcoming isn't it?" Colonel O'Neill asked his team, voice dripping with pleasant sarcasm. His voice echoed in the empty area, and he heard Sam and Jonas jump slightly at his words.

"If you insist, O'Neill." Teal'c replied, deadpan, as usual from the Colonel's left. Jack drew in a startled breath. Hadn't Teal'c just been standing with the other two? He was sure he'd seen a third shadow, he was almost _certain _of it.

When he looked back to where Carter and Jonas stood, he saw only _two_ shapes.

"Teal'c weren't you just over there?" Jack asked.

"To where are you referring, O'Neill?" Teal'c questioned.

"There, next to Jonas."

"I was not." Teal'c informed O'Neill.

Jack cast a puzzled look into the black night, searching for the third shape. He saw nothing; shook his head, and decided that what he'd seen was only a figment of his imagination. After all, the dark has an annoying tendency to play tricks on one's mind.

The icy wind picked up again, feeling as though cold fingers were running down the team's backs, it made all of them shiver to try and shake the eerie feeling that accompanied the wind.

"Carter, do we have to stay here? It gives me the creeps." O'Neill whined mockingly.

"Sir, I don't understand. The MALP showed a generally peaceful planet with a climate much like that of Earth in the summer months. It was nothing like this." Replied Major Carter from somewhere to O'Neill's right.

"So, we have the wrong planet?" Jack asked hopefully.

"So it would seem."

"Then let's dial up and get out of here."

"I will, as soon as I find the DHD."

"Here, maybe this'll help." Came Jonas's voice above the wind. The next moment, light flooded from what seemed to be a tiny pinprick in a black velvet quilt. No doubt a flashlight.

_'At least Jonas knew where he'd put _his_ light.' _Jack thought with wry amusement.

Jonas swept the flashlight across his friends' faces and around the place that the gate had deposited them. Then he saw it; the red glow of the DHD as the light hit the half sphere in the centre and reflected back at them.

"There's the DHD Carter." Jack said, stating the obvious.

Nodding, Major Carter made her way to the device, only able to see from the shaft of light coming from Jonas's flashlight. She entered Earth's gate address and waited, the first six chevrons encoded and just as the seventh was reached, a clicking sound could be heard from the gate and the entire process shut down.

"Major, what happened?" Jonas questioned cautiously.

"I don't know Jonas, the seventh chevron won't lock in."

"Well that's obvious Carter, but _why_?" Jack spoke up.

"It could be a flaw in the signal transference from the DHD to the gate. A faulty wire or something."

"Can you fix it?"

"I don't know, it'll take some time, a lot of time and without the proper instruments to work with, who's to guarantee that it'll even work?" Carter tried to explain.

"How _much_ time Carter?"

"Taking into account the lack of light on this planet, the lack of proper instruments, and the weather, it could take hours, days even, and that's only if there _is_ actually a flaw in the signal transference."

"That's a long time to wait in the cold and the dark."

"I'm aware of that Sir, but it's the best I can do."

"Then you'd better get on it Carter."

"Yes Sir, I'll get right to it." Sam told her CO and motioned for Jonas to bring the light closer so she could work, he did as asked and stood over the Major as she took apart the DHD in hopes of repairing it so they could get home.

Colonel O'Neill paced ungracefully without any light to guide him, and finally decided on stopping before he directed his course right instead of left and encountered something that he wouldn't see as very pleasant.

All available lights had to be in Carter's vicinity so she could see what she was doing without royally screwing up the operation of the Stargate and devastating any hopes SG-1 had of getting home.

However, one light was allowed to remain with Teal'c and the Colonel as they kept watch to avoid any unpleasant encounters with anything that would classify as being threatening to the team's well being.

Teal'c watched as Jack sat down heavily on an oversized tree stump and sighed at their current predicament.

"Why Teal'c? Why?" He muttered.

"To what are you referring O'Neill?" Teal'c questioned.

"Why is it that we always end up getting stranded on planets that are dark, cold, and all around disturbing?" Jack told the Jaffa.

"To my knowledge, this is the first planet we have been stranded on that is cold, dark, and disturbing, O'Neill." Teal'c clarified.

"Okay, so this may be the first planet that's dark, cold and disturbing, but it feels like every time we take a trip through the gate, we end up in trouble." Jack replied.

Teal'c thought about that for a moment before resisting to speak. He then turned his head into the darkness and continued to scout his surroundings.

Jack shook his head and got to his feet. He casually made his way over to where Major Carter and Jonas were hard at work and stood, looking over Jonas's shoulder at what, exactly was going on.

"So, How's it going?" Jack asked in an overly cheerful manner. Jonas and Sam both jumped at the sound of Jack's voice and Jack jumped at their reactions.

"Woah, hold it. Jeez you two are tense, relax. I come in peace." O'Neill stated carefully, raising his hands innocently.

"Sorry about that Colonel, I guess you just caught us by surprise." Jonas explained uncertainly.

"This place freaks you out as well huh?" The Colonel stated, drawing his own conclusions.

Jonas nodded guiltily. "You could say that, Colonel."

"Uh huh, just as I figured. So, back to my question, how's it going?"

"Well Sir, it's going as good as can be expected considering our situation." Sam told him.

"What have you found out?"

"As of now. Nothing. As far as I can tell, the gate's in perfect working order."

"Then why won't it dial up?"

"I can't tell you yet. I need more time, more information and some light would be nice, our flashlights are going dead."

"Better shut them out for now, we don't want to expire the batteries, we might possibly need those later."

"Sir," Sam began to object. Jack held up a hand.

"Carter, shut them out, we have to conserve energy."

"Yes Sir." Carter reluctantly agreed and reached to shut out the nearest flashlight.

"Sir, I'm going to want to get back to work at this." She implied.

"Yes Major, I know that and you can, first thing in the morning, when it's _light_ out." Jack told her, she nodded and got up from the ground, gathering a flashlight as she came.

"Until then, we should all get some rest. I'll keep first watch. Pick a comfy place on the ground, if you can find one." Jack told her.

Sam rolled her eyes, wandered over to a place close to the DHD, and laid out her bedroll. However, amidst the darkness and the wind, she found it difficult to settle down and get any rest.

Colonel O'Neill took up residence on his stump and sat rigidly, looking around in the darkness as the rest of his team settled.

Despite the chill factor, Colonel O'Neill found himself dozing off and immediately shook his head to clear it.

"Three hours Jack, three hours and then you will be permitted to go off to dreamland until your second shift comes up." He reassured himself.

An hour had passed when O'Neill fell into a light sleep, his readied weapon falling to the damp ground with a silent thump.

Sometime later, he wasn't sure how long it had been; he was jolted awake by a shuffling sound, somewhere behind him. He whirled around, any last traces of sleep being snatched from his foggy mind, and he was immediately aware of anything and everything around him.

He grasped the flashlight at his waist and turned it on, shining it in the direction of the noise. When nothing turned up, he switched the direction of the beam towards his team. Jonas, Sam and Teal'c were all accounted for and with the exception of Teal'c, were still asleep.

"What was that?" Jack whispered to Teal'c.

"I heard it as well O'Neill. Although, I do not know what it was." Teal'c replied, rising to his feet and coming over to the Colonel.

Then the realization hit Jack. "I fell asleep." He replied in astonishment.

"So it would appear."

"I fell asleep!" Jack repeated.

Teal'c remained silent as Jack cursed himself for falling asleep on watch and eyed him curiously.

"Would you like me to take over watch, O'Neill?" Questioned the Jaffa.

Jack shook his head. "No, I'm wide awake now, there would be no sense in it."

"As you wish." Teal'c replied and returned to his place on the ground, falling asleep quickly, well into a deep state of meditation was more like it. Either way, Teal'c's breathing leveled off and he was silent.

O'Neill sighed and decided on keeping watch while standing instead of sitting. He did just that.

About a half-hour later, another sound brought Jack out of his thoughts and his attention turned toward whatever was creating the sound.

He turned back to his sleeping teammates and realized that all of them, even Teal'c were still asleep.

Without a further thought, he decided to investigate the noise himself and so, took off in the direction that it came from. His trek led him to an area of dense bush that was oddly illuminated in a glow of gold.

"Okay, this is...odd." He concluded and ventured further into the light. He came to a dead stop roughly five feet from where he began walking from and gazed ahead of him.

A woman about five feet tall, with brunette hair that tumbled past her shoulders to her mid back in elegant curls turned towards him. She was dressed in a blue gown that swept around her, over her feet and she had a complexion that was pale, yet it glowed. His attention was drawn to her almond-shaped eyes. They were a piercing shade of blue, that was so close to violet, you could spit to make the difference and were evenly set on either side of her delicate nose above well defined cheekbones.

Jack could do nothing but stare. The soft gold light gently covered him and he realized that it was emanating from her. Jack gazed at her as she turned to go.

"Hey, hold it. Wait up, where are you going. Better yet, who are you?" Jack called after her and took off into the forest.

As he followed he noticed she was getting fainter and harder to see. She stopped and turned back towards him. And she'd changed, to be truthful, she looked like she been to hell and back.

Her gown was in tatters and torn, her brunette curls were matted to her head and hung limply against her back. Her violet eyes housing a pained look within them were dull and lifeless. Scratches and cuts mutilated her complexion and made Colonel O'Neill's skin crawl.

He stopped then and stood, looking at her in sheer horror. What had happened to the woman he'd just seen moments before? This wasn't the same person, it couldn't be.

"Jack, please help me." The battered woman wailed before coming at him at a speed twice as fast as he could run. He toppled backwards to avoid her and hit the ground, hard. It knocked every ounce of air he had in him out and left him gasping for breath. He looked up at this woman that had pleaded for his help and her face twisted into a look of pure and utter evil. Her eyes glittered menacingly and Jack brought his arms up to cover his head against what was to come.

When he removed his arms again, nothing but darkness greeted him and there was no sign of the mysterious woman that had been there only seconds before.

He lay there on the cold ground, regaining his breath and composure. He got to his feet shakily as a confused look crossed his face. He turned; making one final sweep across his surroundings to be sure there really was _nothing _there and made his way back to camp.

Upon entering the camping area, the eerie golden glow was back and Jack immediately got apprehensive. Looking to where his team was asleep, the same woman, battered and beaten hovered over Sam before floating, literally floating over to where Jonas lay. She bent at the waist and reached her hand towards the sleeping man. Almost instantly her hand transformed into something twisted and threatening as it loomed over Jonas's exposed throat.

"Jonas! Look out!" Jack yelled. Jonas snapped his eyes open but it was too late, the woman had already began the descent of her hand towards his throat.

Jack ran toward the two figures at top speed, hoping, praying he would get there in time to stop the murder of one of his team members, as well as a friend.


	2. Sounds in The Night

**Chapter 2: Sounds in The Night.**

"Jonas! Look Out!" Came the Colonel's voice through Jonas's sleep. It jolted him awake when he heard the note of urgency in the warning.

He quickly snapped his eyes open and turned to where O'Neill's voice was coming from. He was greeted by the sight of Colonel O'Neill running toward him at top speed, panic splashed all over his face, which was illuminated by the small flashlight he was carrying.

"Get out of there!" Yelled Jack. Instinctively, Jonas looked wildly around to see what the Colonel was talking about, but could see nothing.

"What is it Colonel?" He questioned in confusion.

Jack was still running towards him and had just about reached him. He stopped and aimed his gun at something, Jonas's breath grew shallow with apprehension. A gunshot echoed in the darkness and Jonas cringed.

Then the breath was snatched from him as the feeling of something grabbing at his throat took over, he yelled in surprise and flailed his arms wildly in front of him. Each time he passed through a certain spot in the air, an ice cold feeling came over him but, there was nothing there. He felt the wind from the gunshot rush past his face and drew in a sharp breath, realizing he was once again able to breathe. The dull thud of the shot hitting something solid rang out, followed by the distinct sound of splitting wood.

The Colonel's shot had managed to hit a tree somewhere in the surrounding forest. Jonas breathed when he realized he was still in one piece, with no serious injuries.

He felt Jack's presence lean over him and saw the glimmer of the flashlight beam as Jack quickly kneeled to the ground next to him.

"Are you okay Jonas? I managed to shoot her but, I wasn't sure if she'd gotten you or not." Jack panted.

Confusion flashed across Jonas's face, as he realized that he really had no idea what the Colonel was talking about. Sounds of footsteps came toward them quickly, the remainder of SG-1 no doubt.

"What's going on?" Sam questioned anxiously.

"Uh, to be truthful, I have no idea." Jonas stated simply, regarding the Colonel carefully, Jack's face went blank.

"What do you mean you don't know? I just saved your life and you don't _know_ what happened?" Jack erupted.  
"No, not really."

"She was going to _kill_ you!"

"Who was going to kill me Colonel?"

"That woman that was leaning over you."

"I'm sorry, there was no one there." Jonas stated quizzically.

"What do you mean there was no one there? I _shot_ her!"

"Who did you shoot, sir?" Sam questioned, clearly not cluing into what was going on.

"This freaky looking woman with long hair and purple eyes."

"Freaky looking sir?" Sam wondered.

"Well, yeah. She was trying to kill Jonas."

Major Carter looked toward Jonas to gather any information that she could, however, his face remained blank and questioning. He shook his head slowly to get the point across that he knew nothing about what was going on. There really was _no_ woman standing over him when he woke up.

"I'm telling you, there was no one there." Jonas stated.

Jack sighed, a long exasperated sigh. He was sure that there had been a woman, and she was trying to murder one of his team members. And, he was sure that he had shot her. Granted, the shot seemed to go right through her but, he felt no need to mention that to his team, they already thought that he was completely off his rocker. If he said he shot _through_ a person, they'd definitely keep their distance from him, no questions asked.

"But, I'm sure..." O'Neill's voice trailed off.

"O'Neill, are you feeling unwell?" Teal'c asked in his usual tone.

"I'm _fine_ Teal'c! There's nothing wrong with me but, I know there was someone there!" Jack exclaimed scoldingly.

"Alright sir, if you say so. Hey, how about I keep watch while you get some rest huh?" Major Carter replied in concern.

Reluctantly Jack gave in and picked a comfy spot on the ground. He lay on his back, looking up into the black night sky and attempted to sleep but, it wouldn't come. His mind and thoughts kept drifting, and he kept turning his gaze towards Jonas to be sure that woman wasn't back for round two.  
An hour later he still wasn't asleep and he turned to Jonas for the umpteenth time and was met by the sight of the man sleeping silently. Jack sighed deeply and turned to his side, facing the dark forest and simply thought. Maybe that would put him out.

By some miraculous feat of magic it worked, and he felt his eyes grow leaden and shut. Within the next minute he was asleep, engulfed by the unforgiving darkness and sent into his subconscious, where nothing occurred. It was a restless and dreamless sleep.

A sharp sound pierced the silence of the night and roused Jonas from his dreams. He bolted upright to a sitting position and looked from left to right, and then to the front. Finally, turning his body he gazed into the darkness behind him. Nothing, there was nothing there.

He looked towards Colonel O'Neill to be sure he wasn't still being watched by the man who seemed to be overprotective of him on this mission, and was greeted by O'Neill's sleeping form, turned away from him.

_'How could he not have heard that? It was a sound loud enough to wake the dead! Okay Jonas, let's not think about waking the dead now, it'll only make things worse. Still, how could I have been the only one to hear that? Wait, Major Carter had to have heard that, if she's on watch. There's no way that she _couldn't _have heard that.' _Jonas mused to himself. He slowly got to his feet and took one final sweep of the area.

"Major Carter?" He called, the only reply that came was that of silence. The sound of the wind was merely a silent breath around him. This was certainly strange, no doubt about that.

"Major?" He called again and again only the wind greeted him.

Just then the sound of crying danced around him, causing every muscle in his body to tense. A strange creeping sensation swept over him, causing him to involuntarily shudder.

"Hello?" He whispered.

The crying continued, it seemed to be beckoning him toward it, he resisted the nagging to go and hung back, still listening. The weeping continued and seemed to be getting louder. Did that mean that it was coming closer? At last, the sound was so prominent, Jonas could've sworn he was only a few inches from it.

An icy chill dashed down his back and he jumped at the feel of it.

"Who's there?" He asked, voice hoarse and frightened. Again the crying echoed in his ears followed by the touch of a cold hand on his cheek.

He quickly brought his hand up to brush the feeling away but, it continued, becoming more chilled and definitely more real. He swept a glance to the side, keeping his head straight and was startled to see nothing. He was truly scared now, not to the point of running but, he was damn close to it.

Seconds later, he felt a strange presence next to him, it wasn't anything solid, that was for sure but, he knew it was there as a sheet of mist brushed against his face and neck. He drew in a shaky breath and closed his eyes to shake the feeling. When he opened them again, he yelled out in terror at the sight before him.


	3. Cold Freeze

**Chapter 3: Cold Freeze**

Jonas was terrified, every muscle held rigid and stiff, eyes wide and panicked. His heart thudded against his rib cage, and nothing he did allowed him to gain control over it. He backed away from what was in front of him and toppled over his bed roll. He hit the ground and was literally frozen stiff with fear.

Gathering what courage he could muster he raised his eyes from the spot they had been and stared into two pairs of eyes that seemed to pierce through him and look into the very depths of his soul. He cringed against the gazes and braced himself for the worst.

The two misty figures began to close in on him, hands outstretched, looks of hatred etched on their pale features. Jonas yelled out again in fright and scrambled back.

"Get away! What do you want from me?" He shouted out, anything to ward off the two approaching figures and perhaps to call for help. At this point, he was desperate.

He slammed his eyes shut to block out the approaching terrors in hopes that this was all a nightmare and he'd wake up at any moment. He felt a hand of ice touch his cheek and yelled again. The hand made its descent until it was hovering just at his throat he thought he knew what was coming but, was all but, right in his conclusion.

He opened his eyes a slit and was staring into green eyes, flashing with anger and looked down to the hovering hand. It quickly jumped from his throat to over his heart and plunged in past his ribs. It felt as though a spear of ice was being passed through him. He yelled again and didn't stop, he closed his eyes again to shut out the pain and the feeling of ice and felt himself passing over into darkness. He fought with all his will power to stay awake and the icy feeling turned into one of fire as pain coursed through his body.

The second person howled with laughter, dark laughter that shook his bones and invaded his mind. He drew one conclusion, the laughing person was a man. He felt himself slipping into the darkness that was falling upon him with increasing speed and was ready to give in to the blessed beyond when he felt a tight grip on his shoulder.

He yelled out with more force, thinking that he was done for and tried one last desperate plea for assistance.

"Somebody, help me!" He cried out into the darkness, those were his final words before he heard a sound of a different sort, instead of the sounds of laughter and the harsh buzzing in his ears he heard something else.

"Jonas! Jonas calm down!" Came a soothing voice through his mind's haze and body's pain.

He slowly opened his eyes and realized that there was nothing in front of him where the two people had just been. In fact there was nothing there at all. The only thing that kept him from passing out completely was the tight grip holding his shoulder from the back.  
He snapped around and stared into the face of a very concerned Major Carter.

"Major Carter?" Jonas questioned through bleary eyes of suspicion and confusion.

"Well that's a nice way of greeting a person, Jonas." Carter joked, trying to make light of the situation she had just walked into.

"Pardon?" Jonas asked, clearly not understanding what the Major was getting at. Then it dawned on him and he forced a smile, despite his ghost white face and shaking hands.

"Oh, sorry about that Major Carter..." His voice quieted to even less then a whisper.

Sam viewed him through concerned blue eyes and diverted her attention when the sounds of footfalls crunched towards them. Jonas immediately became apprehensive and tried desperately to avoid the hyperventilation that was mounting in his lungs. He drew in a shallow breath and his eyes grew wide with fright. He felt a reassuring touch to his shoulder, Major Carter.

"Jonas, calm down." Carter soothed him, feeling him tense up under her hand and hearing the shallow breath he drew in through his mouth. Jonas nodded stiffly and kept his wide-eyed gaze pointed in the direction the footfalls were coming from.

Sam directed her flashlight beam towards the footsteps and Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c came into sight range. She felt Jonas relax considerably under her touch at the sight of the two approaching men, and heard him draw a stronger breath than his previous attempts.

"Hey what happened?" Came O'Neill's voice.

"I was wondering the same thing." Sam said looking into Jonas's eyes.

Jonas hesitated and looked around innocently. He didn't reply.

"Well? What happened Jonas? And what _are_ you doing on the ground?" Colonel O'Neill piped up.

"I uh..well, you see, it's difficult to explain." Jonas replied quietly from his place at the Colonel's feet.

"Explain away, I've got the time." Jack told him.

Jonas continued to hesitate and Jack continued to wait for an explanation.

"Well, There...no, I was...no." Jonas started but, he could never seem to find the right words to explain what he had just been through

He idly rubbed at the spot where the green eyed man's hand had entered.  
"Spit it out Jonas!" Jack exclaimed.

"Alright! Please, this may sound insane, but here it goes. There was a sound that woke me up and I thought it was one of you. I guess I was wrong. You see, when I woke up I swear that I could hear someone, a woman perhaps, crying. I called out but nobody answered. Then, it was the strangest feeling..." His voice began to trail again.

"Jonas!" Jack said bringing Jonas's speaking level back to an audible sound.

"Right, sorry Colonel. As I was saying, the strangest feeling came over me. It was like icy fingers creeping up my spine and then it felt like a mist or something came from nowhere. It clung to my face and then the icy feeling came back. I closed my eyes for just a second and when I opened them there were two people in front of me. The way they looked at me though, I'm sure it was a look of hatred, for what I don't know but, it was there." Jonas explained. When he stopped, he realized that everyone was looking at him curiously. He was still on the ground and now each of his friends were on their knees next to him.

"One of them attacked me, right here." Jonas motioned in the area of his heart.

"Jonas, there was no one here when I came across you screaming." Sam stated.

Jonas's eyes grew wide once again. There _had_ been someone there and he _had_ been attacked, it still felt as though his chest was in a vice, his breathing proved that, although not terrible, it still wasn't up to par.

"But, there _was_, Major." Jonas objected.

"No, there wasn't. I'm sorry, I'd like to believe you but, I didn't see what you did." Sam told him.

Teal'c stood by looking on silently and then spoke up. "Jonas Quinn, the fact that you saw something that no one else did, sounds as though you were in the same situation as O'Neill."

Jonas nodded in understanding and looked over to where Jack was kneeling. Colonel O'Neill's diverted attention turned back to Jonas.

"You saw a ghost too, huh?" Jack replied.

"Apparently." Came his reply.

At that point in the conversation the wind picked up once again sending iced daggers through the team's clothes and piercing their skin.

"I think it's time we went back to camp, in your ghost hunting, you seem to have wandered away from our safe haven." Colonel O'Neill stated.  
Each member of SG-1 nodded in agreement.

Looking into the darkness, before getting to his feet Jonas caught a glimpse of a strange light, from within the light, appeared the same two people that had attacked him previously. His breathing once again became shallow and panicked, he felt his lungs heaving for air and began coughing because of the lack of it.

"Jonas are you alright?" Came Jack's voice through the wind and his coughing. He shook his head blindly in the negative and kept his eyes glued to the people that were walking towards him.

"Can't you see them?... They're...They're right there!" He gasped out between coughs.

"Jonas! It's okay, there's no one there!" Sam told him, casting a worried glance towards her CO.

One of the figures kept advancing and came to a stand-still in front of Jonas. Jonas's eyes grew wide with terror as he watched the man standing in front of him reach a hand down toward him. He scurried back, using his feet for leverage and his eyes remained terrorized.

"Jonas! Snap out of it!" Jack shook him gently. Jonas's attention turned to O'Neill.

When Jonas looked back to where the man stood, he felt himself lifting his hand to reach the outstretched one of his tormentor. He made contact and immediately he was overcome by a rush of chill and began shivering. Despite the resistance of his body, he grasped the man's offered hand and allowed himself to be helped up. His legs grew shaky and he stumbled but, was held sturdy by the other person from his torment.

Suddenly both men's eyes burst into hatred and Jonas went into red alert. He leapt back, continuing to shake. He yelled out as he felt the icy entrance of the man's hand into his rib cage again and fell to his knees. Jack stepped in front of Jonas and the feeling of ice in his chest vanished. His shivering stopped and his lungs were once again screaming for air.

Before Jonas knew it, his eyes grew leaden and closed as the ice cold feeling hit him full force again. He found himself tumbling from his knees to the ground and felt someone, he didn't know who, but someone, break his fall and he gave into the darkness.


	4. Possibility

**Chapter 4: Possibility**

Teal'c kept Jonas from hitting the ground by gently breaking his fall. He eased Jonas the rest of the way down as Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter came in closer to be sure he was okay. He was still breathing, that had to count for something at least. After all, breathing _was_ generally a good sign.

Sighing, Jack gently lifted Jonas onto his back to carry him back to camp. When they arrived, Jonas was placed on his bed-roll and Jack sat next to him while Carter worked, and Teal'c kept watch.

In the beam of the tiny flashlight left with Jack, O'Neill took a quick peek at his watch face and did a double take, 9:35! In the morning? And it was still dark! Something definitely wasn't right here.

"Hey, Carter, what time do you have?" Jack questioned her.

She directed the flashlight beam toward her watch and he watched as her eyes widened.

"9:35 Sir. It seems as though we're lacking something." She stated.

"Well yeah, we have no light and it's 9:35 in the morning. By any chance does that strike you as just a tid bit _off_?" O'Neill questioned skeptically.

Sam nodded but, said nothing and looked curiously around. Something definitely struck her as a 'tid bit _off_' as Colonel O'Neill had put it. At 9:35 in the morning, no matter what planet they had been on, it was always daylight. Except here. Here was different, everything about this place was different, and it wasn't the most enjoyable _difference _she had encountered.

OOO

Slowly he was becoming aware of the events going on around him as he desperately tried to force his way back to the waking world. The darkness seemed to keep grabbing at him every time he made progress, and pulled him back under, back to the beckoning darkness.

After endless times of attempting to break through the surface of the dark ocean that had been trying to drown him, he finally made some progress. Slowly, he became aware of someone next to him and he could hear muffled voices of familiarity as he continued to reach the surface.

He drew in a deep breath to quiet his aching lungs and forced his heavy lids open. Everything was a blur, darkness blending with darkness and a tiny shaft of light was directed at his face.

He squinted to block out some of the invading light and groaned as he became aware of the effects of unconsciousness. His stiff muscles, probably from remaining immobile for a length of time in the cold. A dull ache pulsed against his ribs as well as a roaring in his ears that was slowly dissipating into and annoying ringing, and a nagging pain in his head from something he couldn't make heads or tails out of.

"Welcome back to the land of the living Jonas!"

That overly cheerful tone and pleasant sarcasm could only belong to one person. Colonel O'Neill. That theory was confirmed as his vision softened and began to clear up to allow him to be able to make out the figure of a very happy looking Colonel, leaning over him and staring into his face.

He groaned again as the light was once again shone in his eyes. He brought his arms up to shield his endangered eyes from the invading light.

"Oh sorry about that Jonas, you probably want me to direct this elsewhere huh?" O'Neill joked.

Jonas nodded gratefully and was relieved to have the light removed from his face.

"How are you doing Jonas?" Came Major Carter's voice.

"As good as expected, considering the situation." Jonas stated simply.

"I bet. What happened anyway?" Jack asked.

"I'm not sure Colonel but, I know it was something."

O'Neill nodded in amusement at Jonas's reply to his question.

"Sure was. You don't know _what _that _something_ was?" Colonel O'Neill questioned.

Jonas shook his head in the negative and pushed himself to sit. He looked around casually to be sure nothing was watching them and started to stand with the help of O'Neill. He swayed slightly but, quickly regained his composure and cautiously walked over to where Major Carter was working on the DHD.

"How's it going Major?" He questioned.

Sam shrugged in frustration.

"There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it, I rearranged the wires and updated some connections but, other than that there's nothing I can do." She stated.

"Perhaps your repairs will allow the gate to dial up Major Carter." Teal'c replied, coming up beside Jonas

Sam nodded and began to dial up the gate at the SGC. The gate began to dial but, again after the sixth chevron was engaged a clicking sound came from the gate, and the entire process shut down. Sam cursed at the predicament and sighed.

"Sometimes, the hardest thing to do is to go home." Mused Colonel O'Neill in the darkness.

This received another frustrated sigh from Major Carter as she sank to her knees in front of the DHD again to try and repair it.

Jonas checked his watch and realized the time. "Just wondering but, shouldn't it be morning?" He asked.

"It should be but, it's not and I'm anxious to find out why." Jack replied.

"I see." Was all Jonas said.

"You don't find this odd?"

"No, I do. It's just that there really isn't anything we can do to change the fact that there is no light. Trust me, if there was a way to create light from dark I'm sure one of you would've already done that by now." He replied casually.

Each of the remaining members of SG-1 looked at him quizzically. In the dark, he felt his face flush and shut his mouth to avoid further embarrassment.

He turned away from his team and walked up to the Stargate. Once again the wind picked up, and he shivered against it. He was thinking about the night before. No matter how hard he tired not to think, it always happened. It discouraged him that he couldn't control his thoughts, or at _least_ draw them away from what had happened to him.

He had the strangest feeling that perhaps those very thoughts were trying to tell him something, trying to direct him in a certain direction. A direction that he didn't think he wanted to go...


	5. Into The Night

**Chapter 5: Into the Night**

Jonas was pulled out of his thought process by a memory of _something_ flashing through his mind. What it was, he didn't know. All he was aware of was an icy feeling crawling up his spine and a salty taste in his mouth, which was odd, because from what he could remember, he hadn't eaten anything salty since arrival. Come to think of it, he hadn't eaten _anything_. 

He also found himself shivering and realized that it wasn't because he was cold. He shook his head to clear the confusion that was grasping him, and was finally able to focus on the situation at hand.

They were on a cold planet. That was certainly more than he'd bargained for, it was more than _any_ of them had bargained for. Then again, in _this_ line of work, you had to take it as it was thrown at you. Even if it _did_ pitch a curve ball in your direction. To top it all off, it was almost ten in the morning, and still dark! Not to mention he had a headache from something that he couldn't explain no matter how hard he tried.

As he continued to feed his muse, he kept wandering further away from the gate until he finally felt compelled to come to a complete stop, and he did just that. He sank his feet into the ground to get a grip on the slippery surface. He peered around curiously into the darkness and continued to wander further ahead. Then he stopped once again and his face went blank.

At that moment, as he was in a state somewhere between memory and realization, a limbo of some sort and another image flashed through his mind. This one more prominent than the last. It was definitely cold, and it was definitely dark. That much he _could _make out. For some odd reason, it was also wet, and he felt a pressure building in his head as something pushed him down. He was gasping, gasping for everything he was worth. He broke through and the wind that hit his cheeks instantly made them raw. He was looking into the cold, dark eyes of a man that he didn't know, and he was scared. He was pushed under again and came up sputtering.

Then the flash was gone and only the wind was left roaring through Jonas's hair. He swayed unstably and slowly lowered himself to the ground to avoid pitching forward. He shook his head to clear it and breathed deeply. He was definitely confused at what had just happened. He shook his head once again and let out a disbelieving sigh.

When he was sure he'd be steady on his feet, he pushed himself from the ground and started back toward camp. He wasn't sure if he'd tell anyone what he had just experienced but, he knew that eventually it'd come out and he decided to wait until the opportunity presented itself. After all it _was_ bound to happen.

He sauntered back into the camping area to see how everyone was progressing with their tasks at hand. Major Carter was still puttering around in front of the DHD and cursing softly to herself while Jack stood by, looking on in amusement and Teal'c stood watch about five feet away from them.

"Ah, there you are Jonas, I thought for sure you'd gotten lost in the dark, scary, woods." Jack replied.  
"No, I didn't get lost."

"See any more ghosts?"

Jonas shifted uncomfortably in his place and Jack regarded him with interest.

"You _did_, didn't you?" Jack asked suddenly.

Jonas quickly shook his head. "No Colonel, I didn't see any ghosts."

"Oh, well that's good."

Jonas nodded absent-mindedly and breathed in the cool air, gusting around them.

"It is." Jonas's voice trailed off into a whisper as his face went blank.

"Jonas?" O'Neill waved his hand in front of his team-member's blank face and Jonas blinked.

"Sorry about that. I guess I was a little lost in my thoughts." Jonas replied.

"I'll say, what were ya thinkin' about anyway?"

Jonas shrugged. "I don't remember."

Jack shook his head and a smile played on his lips.

OOO

Jonas stood watch, buried in his thoughts when he heard the same crying as he had before and he stiffened in place. The cold wind picked up and he shielded his exposed face.

He turned toward the sound of the crying, and saw a woman standing there, sopping wet and looking like she'd just crawled out of an ice box, her hair was matted and frozen to her head and her lips were a pale blue shade that made him shiver. Her eyes appeared blank and lifeless. Her tears froze on her face in crystals that caught a light from somewhere, she breathed out, and from her nose came slight tendrils of cold steam.

He closed his eyes and when he opened them again the woman was gone, leaving only the silence surrounding him and he was standing alone in the dark.

Jonas gazed around and there was nothing there. He felt a shiver run down his spine as he turned back, still shaking.

OOO

Sam thrust her hand out and made a connection with the DHD. The thing _still_ refused to work and she was losing patience. She was alone with the DHD as Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c had decided to go elsewhere when she began throwing a flashlight in frustration, narrowly missing her CO.

She hadn't meant to throw the light, it just happened. She hadn't meant to frighten her comrades away. Either way, they were gone and she was alone. Not the situation she preferred to be in on this certain planet because she had to admit this place _did_ give her the creeps and she wanted to get off of this forsaken planet before anything more major than Jonas's misfortune took place.

The wind gusted forcefully and she had to keep rubbing at her face to keep it from going numb. Suddenly the gusting stopped, hands down, and was replaced instead by screaming. Faint screaming that sounded like it was coming from far off. The thing that mainly caught her off-guard though, was the realization that the screaming sounded like anything, but human.

She got to her feet and looked into the darkness in the direction of the screaming.

"Who's there?" She called.

"Somebody, please help me!" Was the reply she got. It was a man's voice, panicked and scared, no doubt about it.

Sam went into overdrive and dashed into the darkness to provide any assistance that she could. As she ran, branches grabbed at her ankles, feeling like bony hands gripping tightly, trying to trip her, and the hand-like projections almost succeeded in grounding her, but she was able to recover her balance.

As she ran, the terrified screams grew closer and with each shout, Sam's stomach churned in apprehension. The wind picked up and pushed her along as impatient hands would, seeming to be leading her in the direction she should take and she offered no resistance since the wind seemed to know where it was pushing her.

Just as the screams were so loud and close that they made her ears ring, they stopped dead and silence fell around her. The sounds of the desperate man still ringing in her ears. She picked up her pace and ran harder.

The man picked up from where he left off once again, and it sounded as though she'd passed him by. She turned on her heel and made her way back towards the shouting, the wind continuously helping her. She reached the same place as she had before and the screams stopped, as did the gusts of pushing wind.

"Hello?" She called into the night. The sound of gurgling water met her as well as the laughing of a playing child drifted about. She stood listening curiously at the change in tone and a smile fell on her lips.  
"Sam, come and play with me!" Came the voice of a young girl.

Carter drew in a sharp breath as she felt the grasp of a hand in her own. She looked over and saw nothing. Then she looked down and still there was nothing, yet the grip was still there. She wrenched her hand free, a shout of surprise escaping her mouth, and she backed away.

Beneath her, the ground seemed to turn to the rules of friction and gravity as she was pulled down when her foot slipped on the newly formed ice. She hit the ground, and again drew in a sharp breath as she felt the connection.

The screaming took up again, a huge change from the laughing child of the past, and it was close to her this time. So close in fact, that she could feel the breath from the screamer on her neck...


	6. Another Factor

**Chapter 6: Another Factor**

Sam felt the breath on her neck and turned around in terror to face the person screaming. She stared for a few seconds, eyes wide, before scurrying back away from the sight that met her eyes.

It was a man, probably about Jonas's age, if not younger and he was illuminated by a pale green light that lit up the darkness. He had coal black hair that was chopped close to his head and his eyes, although blank and lifeless were the color of aqua blue that off-set his entire face. He was screaming in what Sam drew to be panic and fright and it sent chills creeping up her spine.

Major Carter stayed where she was on the ice, paralyzed in fright and watched the man in front of her. She didn't know what to do, nothing seemed to be wrong with him, at least nothing that would call for this much of a reaction. Alright, so the guy looked like death warmed over, no questions about it, but still.

Sam scolded herself for thinking about anything pertaining to _death_ in her current predicament and kept her blue eyes on the yelling man. Realizing she couldn't just stand by and do nothing she decided to speak, or try to. Her throat felt constricted and parched and she knew that when she spoke, it would come out as little more than a silent whisper.

"What's wrong?" She croaked. Sure enough, her words were nothing but a whisper.

"Somebody, help me!" He yelled.

"I'm right here! What can I do?"

"Help me!"

"I can't do that if I don't know what's wrong!" Sam yelled above the man's shouts. Her voice was almost back to normal and she was thankful for that.

"Get me out of here!"

"Get you out of where?"

"It's cold, so cold!"

Sam was confused. Of course it was cold, the wind was blowing with the force of a hurricane. It was bound to be cold. However, she felt as though there was a deeper meaning to the man's desperate pleas, she just couldn't put her finger on it.

She heard a cracking sound and realized that it was the ice giving way, if she didn't get off of it, she'd fall through, and this man would be coming with her, she had to get them out of there.

"C'mon, we've got to get off the ice, it's breaking!" She exclaimed and the man looked at her blankly, silencing his screaming.

She reached for the petrified man and grabbed for his arm, only to find that he was ice cold, and she could only keep contact for a few short seconds before her hand passed through his arm and she pitched forward onto the ice. She hit the surface softly, but heard the ice crack again. Without thinking, she turned and ran, leaving the helpless man behind.

When she turned back he was yelling again and she stood, watching in horror as the ice finally broke and the man fell through without making a splash. She remained on the bank of the water for a few more agonizing minutes as she looked out onto the broken ice where she had been only seconds before.

A hand setting on her shoulder startled her and she spun around, full flared terror boiling from her throat with a yelp. When she settled, she remained still and found herself looking into a very familiar face.

"Jonas?" She asked.

Jonas nodded silently and peered out to where Sam's gaze had been stuck to as he came up behind her.

"What're you doing here?" Carter questioned curiously.

"I heard you scream, I thought you might be in trouble, but I can see that's clearly not he case." Jonas whispered to her.

She regarded him suspiciously. _'Why would he be whispering? Oh and by the way, I didn't scream. Why does he claim to have heard me?' _Sam wondered to herself

"I didn't scream Jonas." Sam stated.

"I'm sure I heard you, Major." Jonas replied, his voice raising ever so slightly.

Major Carter looked at him in puzzlement. He was still nearly whispering, while she was talking at a normal level.

"Jonas, why are you whispering?"

"We can't risk Jack and Teal'c finding us, can we?" Jonas snarled quietly. Sam backed up, suddenly frightened of the seemingly innocent man, and kept a close eye on him. He never addressed any of them on a first name basis, not until now. He'd just referred to Colonel O'Neill as Jack.

"Jonas, what are you doing?" Sam asked, watching Jonas reach into his pocket for something. He brought out a tiny silver blade that glinted in a pale green light coming from somewhere. Sam's senses rocketed, and she jumped back from Jonas in surprise.

"Like I said, we can't risk anyone finding us. If you didn't scream before, you will soon. That, I promise." Jonas growled lowly, he brought the blade up and his entire apparel changed right before her eyes. It was no longer Jonas standing in front of her, it was the same man she had tried to get off of the ice, and he had a menacing, shadowed look on his face as he held the weapon.

Sam let out a frightened yell, to draw her friends and continued to step back. He forced her to turn towards the frozen water and continued his pursuit. She felt the drop off behind her, and the wind picked up. Sam teetered on the edge of the bank unsteadily and let out another shout.

The black-haired man launched toward her, the silver blade glistering in the light.

"Now, you will pay for our pains!" He yelled, making the descent of his weapon toward her. She cringed against what was to come.


	7. In The Blink of an Eye

**Chapter 7: In The Blink of an Eye**

As Sam was preparing for the worst, a strong hand took a hold on her shoulder and began shaking her gently. She snapped out of her before-death preparations, only to come face to face with Colonel O'Neill. He was staring at her, concern etched all over his face. Sam relaxed at the arrival of her CO.

"Carter! What's going on?" Jack questioned her.

"Is he gone?" Sam asked timidly.

"Who? There was no one here."

"But, there...Oh." She objected, before cluing into what had taken place.

"What'd you see?"

"A man, on the ice. He was terrified of something, I don't know what."

"Another one of our ghostly visitors?" Jack asked.

"It would seem so." Carter replied with a shiver.

A ghost? How could something like that seem so realistic? Sam could still hear the man's shouts ringing in her ears, and she could still see Jonas twisting into the frightening man. She could still feel the terror of the final moments before O'Neill had come along. Now, all of that was gone in the simple blink of an eye.

"Major, how about we get ourselves back to camp before Jonas and Teal'c decide to come for us." Colonel O'Neill stated.

Sam nodded blankly and followed Jack back to camp.

Upon arrival, Jonas got up from his place in front of the DHD, where Jack had instructed him to so he could see if he was able to fix the device. He wiped his soil-stained hands on his pants and prepared to deliver his progress, or lack-there-of to the two returning members of SG-1.

"How's it going?" Asked Jack, coming toward him.

"Not well I'm afraid, as Major Carter has told you before, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with the system. It just simply won't dial up." Jonas delivered.

"And we are way over-due on our check-in time with the SGC. If we don't get through soon, General Hammond will be sending another team through on a rescue mission." Jack stated simply.

Sam regarded Jonas with cautious eyes and kept her distance, she didn't want a repeat of what had previously taken place in the woods.

"I can try it again but, I'm not guaranteeing anything'll happen." Jonas said.

"Try it." Jack ordered.

Jonas nodded and began dialing up the Earth address. Chevrons one through six locked in place and the team held their breath for chevron seven. Surprisingly the usual clicking sound wasn't heard but, instead the gate continued to dial.

"Chevron seven locked!" Jonas cried triumphantly.

"It looks like you and Carter managed to fix the gate." Jack stated happily.

The gate sprang to life, and the blue settled back into the ring, a shimmering pool of sapphire.

"Let's get out of here." Jack said and went ahead through the gate, followed by each of the remaining members of his team.

Instead of re-emerging in the gate room of the SGC though, SG-1 was thrown back out of the gate and onto the hard ground of the dark planet. Each landed hard and the landing dazed them. Teal'c was the first to regain his feet.

"It would appear that the Stargate is still not working properly, O'Neill." Teal'c stated.

"Why? What did _we_ ever do to _it_? All we want to do is get ourselves back home and off of this planet. Someplace where it's warm!" Jack shouted, scrambling to his feet.

The gate was still open and active but, it wouldn't let them pass through to Earth.

Jonas and Sam got to their feet shortly after Jack had, and each of them sighed in frustration.

"I thought we'd fixed it." Carter sighed.

"Apparently we didn't fix it well enough." Jonas stated simply and returned to the front of the DHD.

"We can't get through but, the gate's still open, hopefully through to the SGC. If that's the case maybe we could at least get a radio signal through to the control room and let General Hammond know about our situation." Major Carter suggested.

"It's worth a try." Jack replied.

OOO

General Hammond turned toward the control room window, where the gate lay open below in the gate room.

The iris had been opened after receiving the signal from SG-1, but the team never made it through.

"We've got a radio signal, General." Replied the technician.

"Put it through." Hammond said hopefully.

The signal was put through and Colonel O'Neill appeared on the screen.

"Colonel O'Neill." Hammond greeted.

"Hi General." Jack said carefully.

"You're overdue with your check-in."

"Tell me about it. We've been having a little problem with the gate. Carter thinks it might be the signal between the DHD and the gate itself but, even after she and Jonas repaired that, we _still_ can't get through."

"The gate's open, isn't Colonel?"

"Well, yeah, but we have a slight problem."

"And that is?"

"We can't get through. We tried, it just tossed us back out."

"Do you have any answers as to why it would do that?"

"Uh, no. Not yet."

"Well, when _will_ you have one?"

"I don't know but, we have _got_ to get out of here. There are some _weird_ things going on here." Jack stated.

"How so?"

"Uh, ghosts?" O'Neill tried.

The General's face went blank very quickly, as he turned to the technician in questioning. The tech shrugged unknowingly and returned his attention to the screen.

"Ghosts? Colonel, do you know how absurd that sounds?"

"I know how it sounds Sir, but it's as close as I can get to the truth."

"What makes you think you have a ghost situation?"

"Well, let me count the reasons. It's dark, and cold, and way, way too quiet. Every one of us has had an — encounter with _something _with the exception of Teal'c. Jonas was attacked by one of those_ 'somethings.'_ What else? Let's see now. I saw a woman, in a manner of speaking.."

"What do you mean, in a manner of speaking? Is Jonas alright?"

"I'm fine General." Called Jonas from behind O'Neill.

"And what I mean by, a manner of speaking is that she was there but, she didn't seem real. Sir, she disappeared as I was following her, and then she tried to kill Jonas!" Jack exclaimed.

"Should I send another team through?"

"No! We can't risk another team in this situation. We'll find a way out of this, somehow."

"You'd better keep me updated on this Colonel. Check in every two hours."

"Yeah, that could be a little difficult. Usually the gate won't even dial past chevron six. This was just a fluke, we'll check in whenever the gate allows us to. I'm telling you General, it's like the damn thing has a mind of it's own!" Jack exclaimed.

"Alright, check in when you get the chance, and for God's sake Colonel. Be careful."

"Will do, General. O'Neill out." Jack ended the conversation and the signal was cut off, almost instantaneously.

Hammond continued to look down on the inactive gate for a few more minutes before turning back to the techie.

"Ghosts?" He asked, dumbfounded.

"Apparently Sir."

"What will they get into next?" Hammond replied before leaving the control room to take up solitude in his office.

The technician shook his head in both amusement and confusion.  
"What _have _they gotten into _this_ time?" He questioned himself.

OOO

"Well, that was an interesting conversation." Jack mused.

"If you say so, Sir." Sam replied.

Everything had fallen silent, the wind included it was too quiet if you asked any member of the team.

The Colonel was the first to voice this out loud.

"Silence _can't _be a good thing, especially silence in the dark." He replied idly.

"You know, you just might be right." Came a voice from behind him. A voice that sounded familiar but, didn't belong to Carter, Jonas, or Teal'c.

He turned slowly and stared wide-eyed at the person who had just voiced their opinion...


	8. Unexpected Visitors

**Chapter 8: Unexpected Visitors**

Colonel O'Neill stared in puzzlement at the person standing before he and his team.

"Tell me I'm not seeing another ghost." Jack replied slowly.

"If you are, then I'm seeing it as well." Replied Major Carter.

"Relax Jack, I'm not a ghost." Replied the new-come apparition.

"Daniel! You're here, yet you're supposed to be dead, and you're telling me you're not a ghost? What? Do I look like I was born yesterday!" Jack exclaimed.

"I swear, I'm not a ghost." Daniel replied.

Jack picked up a piece of rubble from the ground and chucked it at the archaeologist. It passed right through him.

"Hey! Watch it, Jack!" Daniel exclaimed in offense.

"Not a ghost huh?"

"No."

"Oh for cryin' out loud Daniel, I just threw something at you, and it went _through _you. Don't you dare try and tell me that you're not a ghost." Jack stated.

"Alright, things go through me, but that doesn't mean that I'm a ghost."

"In my book, it does."

Major Carter had been looking on the situation in confusion and chose that moment to speak.

"Daniel? How can we be sure that it's really you?" Sam questioned suspiciously, remembering her ordeal with the imposter, posing as Jonas.

"Trust me Sam, it's me. I've got something to tell all of you."

"Can they see you too?" Jack questioned pointing to Teal'c and Jonas.

"We can see him, Colonel." Jonas stated, solemnly.

Teal'c nodded to confirm that he _was _in fact able to see Daniel and continued to look on silently.  
"So, Daniel, you said that you had something to tell us, we're all ears." Jack replied.

"Alright, you've been wondering what the deal with this planet is and I have the answer for you." Daniel replied.

"How, do _you_ know we were wondering about this piece of rock?" Asked Jack.

"I've been keeping an eye on all of you, just to make sure you didn't end up in trouble." Daniel told them.

"And you just picked this moment to make your presence known?" Sam asked.

Daniel nodded.

"So what _is_ the deal with this planet, Dr. Jackson?" questioned Jonas.

"You of all people, should have _some _type of an idea." Daniel informed him.

Jonas drew in a breath as he clued into what was being mentioned.

"You know the..memories, you've been experiencing?"

Jonas nodded silently.

"They're the memories of the people of this planet's past."

"Past?"

"Yes past, this planet has more secrets then any of you could even begin to fathom."

"Like?" Jack inquired.

"The woman that you saw yesterday, the one that was trying to get Jonas out of the way."

"What about her?"

"She was executed on this planet almost 30 years ago."

"So, she was a ghost?"

"A ghost, yes. As were all of the others that you have come in contact with. The two people that attacked Jonas, and the man that was on the ice. They're all ghosts of the past."

"So, why aren't they gone? I mean they _are _dead, right?"  
"They are. They just don't know that."

"Well, what do they want from _us_?" Sam asked.

"Revenge, it's that simple. They want all of you to go through what they went through, that's what you've been experiencing Jonas, their memories."

"So that's what it was when I was...attacked?" Jonas asked, shifting uncomfortably in his spot.

Dr. Jackson nodded in answer to his question.

"Daniel Jackson, I have yet to experience these vengeful spirits that you speak of." Teal'c spoke up.

"Let's hope you don't get that chance." Jackson told him.

"Thanks for the warning but, one thing. How are we supposed to _stop _the ghosts before they get the revenge that they want?" Carter questioned.

"I don't know Sam, it's for you to find out." Daniel stated.

"Well, that's just fine and dandy but, if they want revenge, I'm thinking that they'll stop at nothing to get it and there will be absolutely _nothing_ we can do about it." Jack concluded.

"I'm sorry Jack, I can't help you, I've got to go. You'll find a way out of this, somehow." Daniel replied before vanishing into thin air.

"Oh no, he's not a ghost! Explain _that_!" Jack called into the darkness.

"I'm not a ghost, Jack." Came Daniel's disembodied voice, followed by silence.

"Again with the silence!" Jack exclaimed.

The wind picked up then, tearing over the ground, and biting through the team's clothing.

Jonas looked about, began walking away, and shivered against the wind. So, he'd been experiencing the memories of the planet's past? That in itself was enough to catch anyone off guard, yet he was surprisingly calm, even relieved that he finally had an answer. For some time, he'd been sure he was losing it, now he knew that that wasn't the problem.

He heard a shout ring out in the darkness from somewhere nearby and turned toward it. Only the night greeted him.

"Hello, darkness, my old friend." He muttered, recalling the lyrics to a song he'd heard on the radio recently.  
"Hello Jonas." Came a silent reply.

The darkness was talking back, that was definitely more than he'd bargained for. Soon he realized that the darkness wasn't talking to him at all, instead the greeting was being uttered from someone's lips, and he turned toward the speaker, only to let out a shout of surprise that echoed in the night.


	9. A New Perspective

**Chapter 9: A New Perspective**

Jonas heard his own shout echo around him and was sure that it would draw the attention of anyone within an earshot of a couple kilometers.

Standing in front of him was a young girl, that had answered his greeting to the darkness. Even in the dark, the child was in clear, just as though it was daylight.

She had long brown curls that fell to her shoulders and bright blue to violet eyes. She couldn't be any more than ten years of age, Jonas figured. Yet, she had a certain aura about her that made Jonas think twice before determining her true age.

"Uh, hello there, I'm Jonas." Jonas replied introducing himself.

He wasn't afraid of this child even though she had appeared out of nowhere. To him, the girl seemed so innocent that you couldn't help but think of her as less then a threat.

The child gazed blankly at Jonas through her blue eyes, and he shifted his weight so it was evenly distributed on either side of him incase he had to take off in a hurry.

Jonas regarded the child curiously, wondering what exactly it was that she was up to, and if it would prove to be a problem for himself or SG-1. Thoughts of the girl proving to be dangerous, diminished as she broke into a childish smile.

Jonas returned the girl's smile with one of his own and kept his gaze fixed on her.

"What're you doing here all alone?" Jonas asked gently.

"I'm not alone." Was the child's reply. Her voice sounded like warm summer rain, trapped in a child's body. It was gentle and musical.

"It sure looks like you're alone."

"But, I'm not." Replied the young girl defiantly.

"Okay, if you're not alone, where's everyone else?"

"You're here, _aren't_ you?"

"Well, yes, but I don't count."

The child's eyes twinkled in amusement at Jonas's answer and she laughed to advertise her point.

"Seeing as you're a person, an adult, you have to count as everyone else, because there isn't anyone else that _would _count as everyone else."

Jonas was puzzled at the reply he'd received, but shook it off and tried to explain further, what he'd meant at first.

"No, you don't understand. How did you get this far, in the dark, without the aide of anyone?"

"It's not dark." The child said with a smile.

"It looks dark to me." Jonas replied but, before he could back up his answer his surroundings were flooded with light.

"But, it's not."

Sure enough, there was no sign of darkness anywhere, and the chill that had been constantly present in the air since SG-1's arrival had vanished and was replaced instead, by a more temperate climate. The heat from the sun, warmed Jonas's chilled skin and it was only then that he got a better look around him.

The trees were still there, they hadn't gone anywhere the greenish color of their branches contrasted with the purple of the sky above. A fresh scent drifted in the air and smelled strangely of lilac, mingled with something else that Jonas had never smelled before, and it was mildly pleasant.

Jonas looked down in front of him, and the child stood there smiling in amusement.

"You look as though you've never seen any of this before." She laughed.

"Well, I uh...I haven't. I don't think." Jonas replied.

"You must've, you were here a little while ago."

"No, I wasn't."

The girl placed her hands on her hips and glared at him in confusion.

"You were!" She exclaimed and trotted off, motioning for him to follow her.

Jonas did as he was motioned to, and followed after her, looking about in puzzlement and wonder as he passed over the lush green ground behind the young girl.

OOO

"Carter, have you seen Jonas around lately?" Jack questioned Sam, who was once again seated in front of the DHD, prodding at some of the internal circuitry.  
"No, not since earlier, I think he went that way." Sam pointed to the direction she had last seen Jonas heading.

"I'm going after him, he's overdue for dinner. That is definitely unusual." Jack stated and took off in the direction Carter had pointed.

"Hey, Teal'c can you come over here for a minute?" Sam called to the Jaffa.

Teal'c came towards her.

"What is it you require me for, Major Carter?" Teal'c wondered.

"I need some help here. I can't see in the back of this thing. Could you bring the flashlight down closer?"

Teal'c obeyed and held the flashlight over Carter's shoulder as she looked into the back of the DHD.

"Thanks, just hold it there, I'll see if I can tweak something in here that'll give us an answer as to _why_ the gate is being so difficult."

"You are welcome Major Carter." Teal'c responded.

Sam reached into the back and her hand brushed past something cold. Upon closer inspection, she realized that a buildup of ice was caught inside.

"Here we are. Looks as though it's frozen." She said.

"That is a possibility, considering the temperature in this region." Replied Teal'c.

"I know. Maybe, if I can break through this stuff, it'll allow the gate to make a complete dial-up sequence. But, that still won't explain the last time we actually _did_ dial through and it doesn't explain why the gate expelled us upon entry." She hit the build-up with the palm of her hand to try and break it away. Sure enough, the ice began to crumble with each contact she made.

OOO

"Jonas!" O'Neill called into the dark, receiving nothing, but silence as a reply.

"I hate silence. When I get back to the SGC, I am _so _not going to wish for more time to myself. Every chance I get I'm going to be in the public, where silence isn't an issue. Unless you're in a library that is...Yeah right! A library? _Way_ too quiet for my liking, who needs them anyway?" Jack spoke to himself as he continued searching.

"Jonas!" He called again. Again, silence greeted him.

"Well, hello to you as well." He mused into the darkness. He expected to be greeted back but, received nothing.

"Jonas! Where are you?" O'Neill continued to call.

OOO

"Jonas!"

Jonas heard his name being called out and stopped.

Ahead of him the child stopped as well. "What're you doing Jonas? Come on!" She said.

"Hold on, I'll be there in a minute, I think I heard someone calling to me." He told her.

"Jonas, no one's calling to you. Now, follow me."

"Jonas!" Came the call again, it was Colonel O'Neill.

"No, there _is_ someone asking for me, I'm just going to go back and let him know where I am."

"No! Come with me, I have something to show you." The girl yelled at him.

"Just a minute, I'll be right with you." Jonas replied, taken aback by the response he'd gotten from her.

The child's face clouded over and it was clear she was angered but, she didn't look as though she was going to stop him.

"Fine, I'll wait here for you." The child pouted, and seated herself in the grass, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'll be back..." Jonas started, but realized he didn't even know the girl's name, yet she knew his.

"Hurry, back." The child replied, clearly not understanding his attempt to get her to tell him her name. He didn't want to continue thinking of her as the nameless child he met in the dark, that just didn't appeal to him.

Jonas turned on his heel and hurried off in the direction Colonel O'Neill was calling from. Only when he got out of the sight of the child, did he realize that it had all gotten dark once again, and the cold wind was brushing against him. He slowed down to avoid an ungraceful spill and continued towards O'Neill's voice.


	10. Belief

**Chapter 10: Belief**

"Jonas!" Colonel O'Neill yelled again, and sighed as he received silence as the answer again.

"Jonas what are you up to _now_?" Jack called.

"And still, there is silence." He spoke to himself.

"Jonas, answer me." O'Neill pleaded into the night.

"Colonel? Colonel is that you?" Was the reply he received this time.

"Finally! Jonas, what took you so long? I've been yelling for you for the past twenty minutes!" Jack yelled, sounding annoyed but, he was actually relieved.

"Sorry, about that Colonel, I was uh..preoccupied with something else." Jonas put forth.

"Preoccupied! Preoccupied! What could you possibly be preoccupied with on this piece of rock? It's dark, and cold!" Jack complained.

"Something came up Colonel." Jonas replied pushing through, into Jack's range of sight.

O'Neill pointed the flashlight in Jonas's direction and Jonas brought his hand up to block out the brightness of the beam being pointed at him.

"Sorry, bad habit y'know." Jack stated, lowering the flashlight.

"Uh huh." Jonas replied skeptically.

"What was so important that you couldn't answer me?" O'Neill questioned.

"I umm," Jonas searched for the words to explain what he'd just been through.

O'Neill looked at him expectantly.

"Well?"

"I was following a child." Jonas finally said.

"A child! What for?" Jack exclaimed.

"She told me to. And Colonel, it was light, and warm!" Jonas said.

"What?" Jack asked in surprise.  
"No, really. I was standing watch and I spoke aloud to myself and this little girl answered me. She couldn't have been any more than ten, I don't think. She answered the statement I had voiced to myself and she told me to follow her. I told her it was dark, I was wondering why she was here all alone, where everyone else was and she insisted that she wasn't alone and she told me that it wasn't dark. And then, as if out of nowhere, it wasn't dark! And I could see! And there was sun and it wasn't cold anymore. The sky, it was purple and the trees they were green! A different color green then I've ever seen and there was a smell, at first it smelled like lilac, but then I realized that there was something else mixed in I couldn't identify what though, and Colonel, it was wonderful! The smell it was pleasant, but I don't know what it was, and..."

"Woah, hold it Jonas, just hold it! You're babbling and you're not making any sense. Slow down, I can only comprehend so much. Now, start again, from the beginning. Take it slow so I can catch at least _half_ of what you're trying to say." Jack replied.

"But, sir, it was so strange. I don't know how to explain it." Jonas replied.

"You weren't having any trouble explaining it a few seconds ago. I got that you were talking to yourself and you answered yourself? Jonas that can't be normal, it'll make people wonder."

"No! I wasn't talking to myself exactly, I was talking to the darkness."

Jack regarded him suspiciously in awkward silence.

"You were talking to the darkness? That's even worse then talking and answering yourself."

"I had to do something to pass the time Colonel, it was too quiet."

"All right so you were talking to the darkness, and there was a little girl?"

"Yes, a brunette, with blue eyes. She was a child, no more than ten I don't think. I asked what she was doing there all alone, she said that she _wasn't_ alone, and I said that it was dark and then suddenly it wasn't. Just like that there was light."

"So the kid said let there be light and there was? Or did _you_ say let there be light and there was?"

"Colonel, nobody said anything, it just was light."

"Okay so it was light and the skies were what? Purple."

Jonas nodded and remained silent as Colonel O'Neill attempted to sort out everything in his head.

"Okay, that's odd. You said something about a strange smell of lilacs, and something _else_?"

"That's right."  
"And she told you to follow her?"

Jonas nodded again.

"Then what?"

"Then I heard you yelling to me. I told her I'd be right with her and she sat in the grass, That's when I came at your call." Jonas stated, simply.

Jack remained silent, taking in what Jonas had just told him and sighed. Jonas was seeing ghosts again? This couldn't be good.

Jonas regarded the Colonel, trying to see if O'Neill believed anything he'd just been told. It was hard to say but, the look of skepticism told him that Colonel O'Neill was doubtful, to say the least.

"Jonas! You said you'd be right back!" Came the voice of the child.

"I'll be right there, hold on." Jonas called after her.

"What?" Jack wondered as he heard Jonas call to the darkness yet again. His face was twisted into a variant of emotions, the main being confusion.

"It's nothing, the child just called to me." Jonas replied matter-of-factly.

"Are you sure? I didn't hear anything, which leads me to ask, are you sure you did as well, or are you hearing voices that only you can hear?" Jack asked, taking a step back in mock caution.

"Colonel, I heard her yell. I told her I'd be right back. I've got to go." Jonas replied.

"Not alone, you're not going anywhere." Jack told him.

"Then come along." Jonas replied.

"No! Jonas, leave him there. Come alone. He won't believe you anyway. Besides, I don't want to show _him_ anything. I want to show _you_ something." Came the child's shout.

"How can you be sure he won't believe me?" Jonas called back.

"He just won't!"

Jonas sighed, and turned back to Colonel O'Neill.

"She wants me to go alone. She doesn't think you'll believe me."  
"I probably won't but, let's just go and see, shall we?" Jack replied cautiously.

Jonas shrugged and began to walk back the way he had come, followed closely by Colonel O'Neill.

"I told you to come alone!" Came the child's voice from close by.

Jonas looked down and saw the brown haired child, standing not three feet from him, hands on hips defiantly, her blue eyes turned icy.

Jonas knelt down so he was at her eye level and spoke.

"Sorry, he insisted on coming along. Why don't you show us _both_ what you wanted to show me?"

"Jonas, _who_ are you_ talking_ to?" Jack asked.

"The child, she's right here." Jonas replied in puzzle as though anyone should be able to see the glaring child.

"Okay, hey kid." Jack replied cautiously into the darkness.

He looked down at the kneeling Jonas, and shrugged. "Where?"

"Right here!" Jonas replied, placing a hand on the child's shoulder. She was cold to the touch and Jonas immediately drew his hand back.

"What Jonas?" The girl questioned innocently.

"Aren't you cold?" Jonas asked, reacting to the chill he'd felt as he touched her shoulder.

"Maybe a little." The girl admitted.

"Now, what is it that you want to show me?" Jonas asked, looking at the young girl sympathetically.

"You can't bring your friend, it's a secret."

"I'm sure Colonel O'Neill won't say anything to give it away, will you Colonel?" Jonas inquired, looking to where a very confused looking Colonel O'Neill stood looking at him blankly.

He slowly shook his head. "Oh, no, not at all." Jack said slowly.,

"See?" Jonas asked the child.

"He's lying! He doesn't even believe you, can't you see that?"

Jonas drew back at the child's yelling but, remained in his kneeling position.  
Jack looked onto the situation in sheer confusion. Jonas was kneeling on the ground, in front of an invisible child that only Jonas could see, and what made it worse, he was talking to the figment of his imagination, just like he'd talk to an actual person standing right there in front of him.

"C'mon, Jonas. Why don't we go back to camp and get Carter to take a look at you huh?" Jack asked cautiously.

"You don't believe me _do_ you Colonel?" Jonas questioned in exasperation.

"I don't know how to tell you this but, no. I can't see what you see, so therefore I don't believe you. I'm sorry Jonas I wish I could but, until you give me something solid to work with I'm going to doubt you." Jack admitted.

"See, I told you." The child told Jonas.

"I guess you were right." Jonas told her.

"Will you _please _stop doing that?" Jack yelled.

"Doing what Colonel?" Jonas asked.

"Talking to the empty spot in front of you. It's making me uncomfortable." Jack shifted in place.

"To me, the spot in front of me _isn't_ empty. There's a child here and that's who I'm talking to." Jonas stated.

"No, Jonas there isn't a child there!" Jack shouted.

"We don't need him _anyway _Jonas, he's no fun. Let me take care of him." The child replied and before Jonas could object, she stared icily at the Colonel and he began gasping for air.

"Stop! Please, don't hurt him!" Jonas begged.

The child ceased her act and simply threw the Colonel back with the force of her thoughts.

Jack felt the air being pushed out of his lungs and he gasped for a breath after Jonas's plea to nothingness. Jack was finally able to breathe again and coughed as air flooded back into his lungs. Then he felt an impact of something in his mid-section and felt himself being thrown back. Upon landing, he felt his head connect with something solid and saw the darkness swimming around him. He turned to Jonas who was looking on in horror and behind his team-member he caught a glimpse of a bright stand-still light that rushed at Jonas and passed in through the man's back.

He tried to yell out but, realized that he couldn't utter a single word, as he fought against the dark that threatened to overtake him. He saw Jonas go limp and pitch forward as the light passed into him. Jack knew there was nothing he could do in this state and despite his best efforts, he passed over into darkness and knew no more.

"I told you he wouldn't believe you." The girl said as she watched Jonas fall forward after touching him.

"If you won't come willingly, I'll have to force you to come see what it is I want to show you." She replied as she brought her hands together, she and the unconscious Jonas vanished into thin air.


	11. Awakening

**Chapter 11: Awakening**

Jonas was slowly becoming aware of things as he slipped out of unconsciousness and back into the real world. The sun hit his face, and he felt the soft ground beneath him. He also felt a light breeze sweeping over him while the sound of water echoed from nearby.

He forced his leaden eyelids open and looked around him, taking everything in. Realization finally dawned on him, slicing through the haze that quilted his mind, he shot to a sitting position and immediately regretted doing so as the world swam around him and pain coursed through his body.

He moaned to himself and fell back to the green beneath him, sinking beneath his mind to block everything out. However, all that he was trying to block out kept coming back, at a force, double the time before and he couldn't shut it out.

Finally lifting his eyelids once again, he was relieved to find that the land had settled around him. He sighed silently, and cautiously pushed himself to sit, closing his eyes as he made his way up. He remained sitting with his eyes closed for a few moments so he'd be sure that everything would stay in place and finally opened them to cautiously peer around.

It was light again, and he was sitting on grass. Looking up, he realized that the same purple sky loomed above him, stretching into infinity, clouds of a lighter purple wandered aimlessly amongst the dark backdrop they were present in. The lilac smell was drifting around again and it was most pleasant.

He switched his gaze to forward, and saw a laughing stream of crystal waters, dancing happily down a creek-bed. The wind sifted through his hair as the sun warmed him and he didn't want to leave. He was comfortable just as he was.

Again, realization struck him as he thought of the misfortune that Colonel O'Neill had gotten caught up in and he stumbled to his feet, shutting out the spinning sensation that made his stomach churn. He looked wildly around for any sign of the Colonel. He found none and he cursed under his breath to voice his distress.

"Jonas, how are you feeling?" Came the familiar childish voice Jonas had come to know.

He thought of how to respond for a moment to explain exactly _how_ it _was_ he was feeling and could find no words that wouldn't confuse the young girl.

"I'm, fine. Mostly." He decided upon and closed his eyes once again as the world around him lurched sickeningly.

Pain continued to flood through him and he attempted to ignore it.

The girl regarded him suspiciously and finally nodded. "If you say so." She concluded.  
Jonas smiled weakly at her and immediately came up with hundreds of questions to ask the child to give him some type of explanation to help him understand his situation.

"What'd you do to Colonel O'Neill, and...and to me?" He wondered.

"You weren't going to come with me unless Colonel O'Neill came, and I couldn't let you bring him, he wouldn't understand. He hasn't had the same experiences that you have which would allow him _to _understand this." The girl motioned around her.

"Actually, I don't know if I quite understand it myself. It all seems so..." He searched for a word. "Strange." He concluded.

"Don't worry, you'll understand. I promise." The child told him.

"If you insist."

"I do."

The child began to walk off, motioning for Jonas to follow. He did so reluctantly, and cautiously to avoid any ungraceful tumbles that threatened to be bestowed upon him.

OOO

"Colonel!" Came a voice from far off.

O'Neill became aware of the real world, and pushed himself back to the surface of his consciousness to answer the call that beckoned him. He reached the top of his consciousness and pushed that final inch further to force his eyes open.

Upon opening his eyes, he closed them instantly as piercing pain thudded through his head and made him nauseous. He groaned in annoyance and brought his hand up to rub at his aching head. His fingers brushed a warm sticky part and he drew them away. The blow he had taken caused damage, and although it wasn't anything he hadn't experienced before, it still irked him every time it happened.

He lifted his lids again and saw the faces of Major Carter and Teal'c both looking concerned for their CO's well-being staring back at him.

"Good morning?" He tried.

"If you insist O'Neill, although in all actuality it appears to be late afternoon." Teal'c told him seriously, stating a true point.

"Thanks for the heads up Teal'c." Jack told him.  
"You are welcome O'Neill."

Jack closed his eyes again as the faces of his team began shifting in and out of focus and waited for the feeling of vertigo to pass before he once again opened them to peer into the faces of his team.

"Sir, what happened?" Sam asked.

"I hit a rock with my head Carter, what's it _look_ like?" Jack stated.

"Well that much is obvious, but _how _did it happen exactly?" Sam inquired, ignoring the tone she had been on the receiving end of.

"Well y'see Major, I don't really know how to explain it, it just happened."

"Uh huh. How hard _did _you hit sir?" Sam asked suspiciously.

"Not as hard as you're thinking Carter."

"I wasn't _thinking_ anything Sir, I just asked." Samantha stated simply.

"I hit hard enough to do some damage and knock me cold, but I don't know _how _it happened. That's the thing, it just happened."

"Uh huh, let's see if we can get you back to camp and try to dial through so we can have Janet give you a personal opinion, granted we won't be able to gate to Earth, but she can at least transmit a radio signal."

"How can she do that without examining me Carter?"

"I know how to check for a concussion Sir, we just have to have her opinion."

"Apparently you know what you're talking about more than I do, Major."

"Let's just get you back to camp, huh Sir?" Sam stated.

Jack nodded blindly and allowed Teal'c to help him to stand, despite his protesting body.

"Wait, where's Jonas?" Jack questioned, as he finally clued into what was happening.

"We thought he was with you, but apparently he isn't." Sam said.

"No, he _was_ I'm sure of that at least, but I'm not sure _where_ he is exactly. I remember seeing him fall over there before blacking out." O'Neill stated, pointing to a place about fifteen feet away.

Teal'c went over to check, but came up empty.  
"He does not appear to be there, O'Neill." Teal'c replied.

"Great, we have a missing team member, just what we need." Jack sighed.

"He can't be that far, but right now, we have to get you back to camp We'll pick up a search later." Sam told him, getting on one side to drape his arm over her shoulder to keep him upright.

They began to walk toward camp. Colonel O'Neill stumbled and would've fallen if it hadn't been for Carter and Teal'c on either side of him to keep him up.

"Oh boy, this might take a while." Jack replied shakily, regaining his balance and trying to keep from falling once again.


	12. The Power of Promises

**Chapter 12: The Power of Promises**

At long last SG-1, minus Jonas had reached the main area of camp and Sam went to try and dial the gate again. Each chevron locked, but the clicking was present again after the sixth one locked in.

"Someone doesn't think you need help Sir." Sam mused.

"I don't Carter, that's the _last _thing I need. I'll get the Doc to give me a once-over if, and _when _we get back. As much as I hate to, I'll allow it. For now though, we should go and find Jonas, he _is _missing after all." Jack stated.

He received reluctant agreements from the other two members and they started off, in their search for their missing team-member.

OOO

Jonas continued to follow the child to wherever it was that she was taking him and did so without complaint. After all, it may have been the only thing that could help him in this predicament.

"It's not far now." The girl told him. He still hadn't managed to get her name, but that was the least of his worries at the moment.

She picked up her speed a bit and Jonas picked his up as well so he could keep her in his sights. She ducked under an overhanging branch and Jonas followed.

Ahead of him, the child stopped short. Jonas did the same, and swept his gaze in front of him, he was impressed. A medium sized village was laid out before his eyes, and it looked to be swarming with people, which surprised him, seeing as it was a drastic change from the planet that SG-1 had gated to.

The child looked back with a smile and ran down the slight slope to enter the village. Jonas followed and caught up with her just as she stopped in front of a makeshift hut and turned back to him.

"Where are we going?" Jonas asked.

"Just in here."

"Why, what's so special about in there?"

"It's _my_ house, what _isn't_ special about it?" The child asked, somewhat defensively.  
She trotted through the front door and motioned for Jonas to follow her, with one final sweep of the area he'd just entered, he did.

Inside the home it was warm and cozy, perhaps a little too warm for the weather of that certain day but, it _was _warm, and it surprised him.

He stood in the entry way and looked around. It wasn't large in the main room, the only furnishings were a kitchen area, complete with a table and counter top, and there was what appeared to be a living area. He guessed these people didn't spend much time inside.

Three doorways branched off of the main room and beyond each, it was dark. He was immediately reminded of the appearance of the planet when he'd first arrived as he looked through the doors, quickly diverting his gaze back to the main room.

"So, uh, why did you bring me _here _in particular?" Jonas questioned, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I just have to get something."

Jonas watched as the girl disappeared into one of the three back rooms, and emerged minutes later, holding a grey, paper bag.

"Alright, let's go."

Jonas eyed the bag suspiciously and turned to leave the tiny home. He stepped out into the sun, it pleasantly warmed his face. He shrugged off his jacket and draped it over one arm. The sun hit his bare arms and he sighed.

When he turned back to where the child was standing, she was no longer there. Instead, he saw her soft yellow jumper bobbing off ahead of him.

"Hey, wait!" Jonas called and jogged behind her.

Jonas followed the girl as she clambered up a rock face, and he climbed up after her.

The child was standing at the edge as Jonas finally peered up over the top. She was looking out onto the view below her. Jonas pulled himself up and walked over to join her.

"Isn't it lovely?" She asked absently.

Jonas looked out and had to agree, it _was_ lovely. The village stretched out below them like toys and beyond the village, rolling hills of lush green and forests of trees were present. The breeze was stronger up here, as was the scent of lilac and Jonas inhaled deeply, enjoying it.

"Sure is." Jonas agreed. He continued to admire the sights when he noticed something odd. In all the land that he could see, the only village present, was that of the little girl that had brought him here.

"Are there any other villages on this planet?" Jonas asked.

The child shook her head. "No, why?"

"It just seems odd, that's all."

"It's not odd to me."

Jonas regarded the young girl and saw her point, she'd lived all her life like this, of course it wouldn't seem odd to her.

"No, I suppose not."

" I wanted to show you the view, but that's not all. There is one last thing I wish to show you." She reached into the bag that she had brought along and when she pulled her tiny hand out, it contained a polished rock, larger than her hand itself. She clutched it tightly and moved over to a drop-off.

"What're you doing?" Jonas questioned her.

"Come see."

Jonas went up behind her and looked over her shoulder into a clear stream. She turned her hand and unclenched her hand. It tumbled into the water without so much as a splash.

"Now, watch." She whispered.

Jonas did, and the water shimmered in the creek, twisting into a distorted picture of what looked to be the village, only it was different, the place was scorched and flooded, everything was gone. When the girl turned back to Jonas her face was tear streaked, and her blue eyes threatened to spill more sorrow.

"What's this?" Jonas asked, peering into the face of the pained child sympathetically.

"It's my village, isn't it obvious." She asked, her voice cracked and she broke into tears again.

"Well, yes I suppose it is but, why is it like that?" He asked, motioning to the destroyed village.

"There will be a terrible accident in two days, and it'll be all my fault. This is what'll happen if it isn't stopped." The child sobbed.

Jonas lay a hand on her slender shoulder and looked deep into her blue eyes.  
"Whatever happens. I'm sure you aren't the entire cause of it." Jonas assured her.

"But I am. I know it."

"How do you know it?"

"I just do, that's all. I just know it's my fault." She continued to cry.

Jonas sighed and wiped a hand down his face, taking in an apprehensive breath. The child continued to cry and stuck her hands into the water to retrieve the stone.

"I have to return this, it's my mother's." She said quickly and placed it back into the bag. Water stains sopped through the paper as the wet stone was set inside. She picked up the bag and began to walk off. Jonas grabbed her arm gently, holding her back and turned her towards him.

"Why did you show this to me?" Jonas questioned.

"Because, I need you and your friends to help me stop this from ever happening. I don't want to experience what I will after the accident, it hurts too much to know you are responsible for the destruction of all of your friends and family. You can't know how much it really hurts until you experience it for yourself." She told him through bleary blue eyes.

"You mean you want us to help you change history from ever happening?" Jonas clarified.

"Yes, I want to make sure this never ever happens but, I can't do it alone. Will you help?"

Jonas hesitated.

"Will you help me or not, I need to know."

Jonas continued to hold back.

"Well?"

"I'm not going to guarantee anything but, I'll try. One thing though. I need to talk to my friends about this. Please." Jonas replied.

"Ok." And with a wave of her hand Jonas found himself waking up on the cold hard ground, confused but, otherwise alright.

Now the thing would be to explain to his friends what he had pulled all of them into, and he wasn't sure how exactly he'd do that.


	13. Appearance

**Chapter 13: Appearance**

Jonas sauntered into the campsite, not particularly looking forward to breaking the news of what he'd promised, without consulting the others. He stopped momentarily, sucked his nervousness up and stopped near the bed rolls.

The site was vacant. He looked left, then right, then for the hell of it looked left again and sighed in confusion.

"Now, where do you suppose everyone could be?" He asked himself, shining his flashlight to take in the entire site.

"I don't know, where are they?" Came a voice from nearby. Another one of his visitors no doubt. The voice sounded vaguely familiar, keeping his fear at a minimum, he turned to face it.

Sure enough, as he'd suspected the child who had asked for his help in the first place stood there, her brunette curls tied back into a bouncing pony-tail and her deep blue eyes looked on curiously. She smoothed the skirt of her fresh pale green jumper and walked up to him.

Jonas watched her come, standing silent and watchful as the child approached him.

"I thought for sure they'd be here somewhere." Jonas replied, when the child came to a stop about two feet from him.

"They were here, earlier. I heard them. They went to find you."

"Did they really?"

The girl nodded vigorously and a small smile crept to her lips and sat there, not showing fully, but showing enough to know that it was there.

"Did you hear where they went?"

"Uh huh."

"Could you tell me please?"

"That way." She pointed to the right of Jonas, he nodded in thanks, and took off in that direction.

"Wait for me, I wanna come too!" He heard her shout. He stopped and allowed her to catch up. When she was close enough, he began walking once again.

It had been at least thirty minutes since the search had started and Jonas had turned up nothing.  
"Are you absolutely certain that they came this way?"

"Yes."

"Then where are they?"

The child shrugged and Jonas fell silent as he heard someone talking softly from far off. To him it was heard softly but, in truth Colonel O'Neill was all but shouting as he vented his frustrations to Major Carter and Teal'c.

OOO

"Where is he? We've looked all over and haven't seen even the slightest trace of him. This is_ really_ starting to get annoying." Jack voiced.

"He can't be far, after all it is dark." Sam reassured him.

"Not in his world it's not. No, no, no! In his world it's light and the skies are freakin' purple! And apparently his world is warm! Why can't I ever find my own warm world with purple skies and daylight?" Jack ranted.

Sam kept silent and decided against replying.

"Huh? Tell me that! I'd really like to know if that's at all possible y'know. He finds his own lil' world that only he can see and he talks to this little kid that only he can see and he claims that she's right there as if she's real and what makes it worse, he follows her at her command! I swear if this invisible kid said jump, he'd say how high!"

"I don't know Sir, I don't know why you can't find your own warm world, and I can safely say I don't know anything about an invisible kid that only Jonas can see. Are you sure you're all right Sir? Should we go back to camp?" Sam asked, her tone concerned and puzzled at the same time.

"I'm _fine_, Major, let's keep going." Jack protested.

Sam nodded, but kept silent.

"Are you sure that guy isn't missing a few stairs in the attic? Talking to invisible things _can't_ _ever_ be a good thing."

"From what I know, he's positively sane, although sometimes you have to wonder."

"You're tellin' me. Jonas!" Jack called.  
"It's nice to know you all are worried about me." Jonas replied as he came out of nowhere.

Each person jumped, excluding Teal'c of course who just looked around in alarm. Jonas stepped into their sights, flashlight held out in front and he was smiling.

"Y'know Jonas, you _really_ shouldn't sneak up on people like that. Especially me, I'm not sure how much more of it I can take." Jack stated.

"Sorry about that Colonel, but I couldn't help but overhear you and figured I'd better make myself known." Jonas replied.

"Glad ya did, now can we _please_ get back to camp, be anywhere, but here? It gives me the creeps."

"No, not yet. I have to tell all of you something first." Jonas objected.

"Oh by all means, say it so we can leave and go back to camp." Jack replied.

"I need a favor, but you have to trust me." Jonas started.

"Oh dear, a favor requiring trust, this can_not_ be a good sign."

"You know the child I've been talking too?"

"Where are you going with this?"

"Nowhere, not that I know of anyway."

Jack sighed. "What about her?"

"Well, she kind of needs a hand in preventing something terrible from happening."

"Meaning?"

"Something awful happened here a while ago and she want's to fix it so it _doesn't_ happen."

"Woah, hold on. She wants _us _to meddle with history and the natural course of things?" Sam interjected.

"Well...yes. Basically, that's it."

"We can't do that Jonas! It's just plain _wrong_!" Jack replied.

"Colonel, please. Give me a chance to prove that I'm not as crazy as you think."

"Oh, I'm way, way, waaaaay past that I'm afraid, but I'll give ya a chance. What does she need?" Jack said.

Suddenly out of nowhere, a brunette, deep-blue eyed child appeared in a soft green jumper, her curls swinging in her pony-tail.

Jack jumped back about a foot and did a double-take. Was it just him, or did this child roughly resemble the woman he had seen the first time? The same woman that tried to attack Jonas and kill him?

Jack regarded her strangely and suspiciously for a moment and then clued into how odd he must look standing there staring, and closed his slack jaw.

"Hey, where'd she come from?" He asked then, to keep conversation from halting.

He looked towards Sam and Teal'c, and saw that they too looked about as startled as he felt. Both had questioning glances on their faces.

Jack turned his attention back to the young child and he was almost certain that this girl resembled the same woman that had previously tried to kill Jonas. However, it seemed odd that this child could have turned into the menace that he'd seen and he had his doubts, whether they were justified doubts or not, they were there and there, was no getting rid of them.


	14. The Cora Plant

**Chapter 14: The Cora Plant**

The child stood there, staring through deep blue eyes, and she looked scared.

"Please, I need your help." She begged.

"I'll tell ya what, we'll see what we can do, as long as we're all in one piece when this is all over." Jack stated simply, exchanging glances with each member of his team.

"All right." The girl told him and turning on her heel, she walked off and SG-1 had no choice but, to follow.

They followed her through the dark forest, but strangely had no difficulty in doing so. It was almost as though there was a light guiding them, only there wasn't.

"How much further is this village thing?" Jack questioned.

"Not far now, we're almost there." The child said, turning back to them.

Jack sighed and continued to follow the brunette child through the forest until she pushed through a barricade of branches and into a large clearing. An odd feeling washed over each of them, causing their skin to tingle.

Jonas closed his eyes and breathed deeply, this hadn't happened the first time and he was wondering why it was happening now.

When they opened their eyes once again, they were standing in the broad daylight, in front of what appeared to be a village of sorts, presumably the one that the girl had been so eager to protect.

Jack looked up, sure enough, the sky _was_ indeed purple and there was a smell in the air that he thought at first was lilac, but upon closer sniffing, he realized it wasn't. Instead, it was something sweeter, perhaps lilac and vanilla? He didn't know what to call it, all he knew was that it was getting into every pore of his skin and giving him instant energy.

"I told you that it wasn't far." The girl replied.

"Guess you were right." Jack stated, in an almost idle response. That smell was definitely enjoyable.

"So, you need our help. With what? Everything seems to be in perfect order around here, no huge explosions or raging fires." Jack said, all business now.

"It hasn't happened yet, but it will. Soon and I want to stop it." The girl said.

"Okay, but first, we need to know _what_ is going to happen."  
"I don't know how to say it, it's complicated."

"How did you tell Jonas?" Sam asked quietly.

"With a viewing stone. Mommy only has one though, and I'm not sure where she put it after I returned it to her."

"How about you explain to us what you saw, Jonas?" Sam asked, turning to the newest member of SG-1.

"I can try. It was dark, and there was fire all around this area, as well as what looked like a flood?" Jonas tried.

"Oookay, dark, fire, flood. Got it but, how is it caused?" Jack wondered.

"I told you, I did it!" The child shouted.

"How?"

"I don't remember, but I need you to help me to remember so that it doesn't happen again."

"We'll do our best kid." Jack told her and looked around the village.

The girl began to walk off towards the rock cliff she had led Jonas up the first time and looked back for SG-1 to follow.

"C'mon." She replied.

Jonas was the first to follow, and despite his objections, Jack ordered Teal'c and Sam to follow as well.

OOO

At the top of the rock, next to the stream, SG-1 looked out onto the planet and down to the village. A soft wind danced around them and the smell was carried with it.

"What _is_ that smell?" Jack asked, inhaling deeply.

"It is the smell of the Cora plant. The fields around us are filled with them. Would you like me to take you there?" The child asked.

"Lead the way." Jack told her, and the child climbed back down the rock to the ground and waited for the others.

She took off at a run toward the left of where she had landed and the Stargate team followed her at the same pace, so as not to loose sight of her.  
They were led into a field of brilliant oranges and pinks and the sweet smell coated them. At the far end of the field, a green forest stood and there was a strange feeling as SG-1 neared it.

Jonas stopped as he began to feel weak and wobbly, looking around, he saw that both Jack and Sam were doing the same and Teal'c looked around questioningly as the same feeling swept over him.

The only one unaffected was the young girl and she cast her blue eyes over the team in alarm at their actions.

"What? What's wrong?" She asked in slight panic and alarm.

"I don't know, it's odd." Sam told her. The child rushed to Jonas's side.

"Jonas, what's wrong with you?" She cried, panic becoming more pronounced.

Jonas could do nothing, but shake his head in the fashion of unknowing. He hit the ground on his knees as he began to feel sick.

"All I know is that we've got to get out of here." Jack forced out through clenched teeth.

"Okay, C'mon, hurry!" The girl shouted, tugging on Jonas to get him to his feet. However, she wasn't nearly strong enough to lift the man and she began to cry helplessly and in frustration.

SG-1 forced themselves to their feet, weakly, amidst the child's crying and began moving away from the field of Cora plants. The child ran along behind them to be sure they got out and at the edge of the field she watched in alarm as once again each team-member hit the ground, unable to go any further.

Within seconds, the sickly feeling passed them and they regained their strength and looked at each other in confusion over what had just happened.

"What the hell is in that field?" Jack exclaimed as he got his strength back.

"There's nothing in that field Colonel." The child whimpered at Jack's tone.

"There's gotta be _something _in there to have that kinda effect on us!" Jack replied.

"Something, but what?" Sam questioned, getting to her feet once again.

"There is indeed something in there, O'Neill. However, I do not know what." Teal'c stated.

"Who cares, as long as we don't go in there we're fine. Now, let's figure out how to help her and get out of here." O'Neill replied, and with one final look back to the orange and pink field, he led them away from the area and back towards the village.


	15. The Calm After the Storm?

**Chapter 15: The Calm After the Storm?**

SG-1 made their way into the village with Colonel O'Neill in the lead and moving quite quickly. The remainder of the team had to walk extremely fast just to stay three feet behind him. It made it that much worse for the child who was running as fast as she could to keep Jonas in sight as he was bringing up the rear.

Jack stopped suddenly, almost causing Carter to bump into him as she was trying to keep up with him. She halted herself just in time, however to avoid a collision.

The child ran up from behind the group, came to a stop next to the Colonel, and regarded him with her blue eyes as he scanned the village.

"What're you doing Jack?" She asked.

"Looking for a sign of anything that may help us solve this thing."

"You're not going to find anything here. I know for a fact that I didn't do anything here."

"You said you didn't remember."

"I don't, but I _do_ remember certain things and I know that you aren't going to find anything to help you, here."

"Then where?"

"I don't know."

The wind picked up and blew around them, carrying the scent of the sweet smelling Cora plant with it. Jonas shuddered at the thought of the experience in the field of the colorful flower and knew that he didn't want to go there again anytime soon...

He watched as Colonel O'Neill sauntered though the village checking each house for dangers or clues and then, he returned to the group.

"All right, I'm convinced that there really _is _nothing here that would cause what you say."

"I told you that." The child responded.

At that moment, Jonas felt a drop of rain hit him and turned his face skyward. There appeared to be a storm moving in and that was confirmed when the sound of rumbling thunder echoed through the purple sky and the rain came down harder.

"Great a storm!" Jack exclaimed.  
"C'mon, let's get inside, when a storm hits here, it hits hard and you don't want to be outside." The girl replied.

She led them into a nearby house that Jonas recognized as the same one she had brought him in the first time and it was still empty.

"Hey, where is everyone..." Jonas asked realizing the child still had no name.

"What's your name anyway?" Jack brought up, voicing Jonas's unvoiced question.

"Coris, it's a variation of the flowers you saw earlier. I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, it just never came up."

"Well at least now we have something to call you other than kid."

Coris giggled at that comment and shut the door behind her after everyone was in.

The rain hit the roof hard and made it sound as though at any given moment the roof would begin to leak, luckily it never did and the team remained dry as they waited out the storm. Wind roared outside and blew right through the home, causing everyone to shiver slightly at the drop in temperature.

It must've continued on like that for at least two hours, two hours that the team spent in silence.

At long last, the storm subsided and Coris led them out of hiding and into the village's centre, where it looked like a royal disaster had hit. Large branches were strewn through the area, as well as crates and Cora plants.

"Looks like those houses are stronger than they look." Mused Colonel O'Neill, scanning the village mess with his dark brown eyes.

At that moment the child craned her neck as if to better hear something.

"Listen." She whispered.

SG-1 did so, but couldn't hear what _she _apparently was able to.

"To what?" Sam asked silently.

"I don't know what it is but, I'm going to find out." Coris took off to her right, and out of the village, followed closely by a curious SG-1.

She led them to the edge of another field of Cora plants and stopped, craning her neck again.

"It's coming from over there." She pointed to a dark forest on the far side of the field.  
"Oh no, we aren't going in there. Not again." Jack spoke up suddenly.

"Then wait here, I'll go and see what it is." Coris took off across the field and stopped at the edge of the forest, the team watching her movements closely.

Jonas heard the noise as well, the noise that seemed oblivious to the others and he listened to it, unmoving. It was there, a far off noise that he could just barely make out. It was a low clicking noise and it was coming from the forest.

"Jonas, what is it?" Sam asked.

"A noise, you can't hear it?"

"No."

The clicking sound grew louder and Jonas no longer had to strain to hear it, it echoed in his ears and he wanted to know what was making it.

"I'm going to check it out." He stated looking towards Coris, who hadn't gone any further than the forest edge.

"Jonas, don't tell me you're going in there after what happened the first time." Jack replied.

Jonas didn't answer, he was already making his way across the field towards the forest.

"Guess so." Jack sighed.


	16. Out of the Calm and into the Forest

**Chapter 16: Out of the Calm and into the Forest...**

Jonas was halfway across the field, when he realized that the sickly feeling hadn't come over him yet and he drew the conclusion that it was something other than the Cora plants that made him feel like that.

Coris watched as Jonas came toward her, and wondered what had made him come, when she heard voices coming from inside the tree-line. Cold voices that made her shiver and she backed up slightly.

Jonas, seeing her motion sped up his walk and still no strange feeling came over him. He breathed a sigh of relief and started off toward her at a run.

Coris saw Jonas speed up and relaxed a bit before moving to him.

From the field's edge Teal'c watched the scene unfolding before him and looked on in interest. Why had the child backed up and why had Jonas Quinn begun running? Perhaps the noise that each of them had claimed to hear _was_ indeed there and only audible to them. Still, what made them speed up?

Teal'c turned to Colonel O'Neill and saw the CO's reaction was roughly the same as his only more...human.

Jonas heard the voices before he came upon Coris.

"Jonas! There's someone in there!" She called, frightened.

Jonas nodded, brought a finger to his lips to shush her, and listened to the voices. There was something ghastly familiar about the sounds of the speaking and he closed his eyes to think back to where he'd heard it in the first place. When the realization dawned on him he jumped and drew in a sharp breath. The first time he had heard those voices was the time he had been attacked back at the campsite.

Just as fast as they began, they stopped and the only sound was that of a silent wind, whistling in his ears. Coris drew closer to him and he could see she was terrified.

"There's someone in there!" She called again.

From the field's edge Major Carter went into full alert. She'd heard the child say someone was in the forest and she turned to Colonel O'Neill who was looking at her cautiously and nodded to confirm that he too had heard the child's call.

"Let's go." O'Neill replied after noticing that Jonas seemed to be fine after traveling through the field of Cora, and he led the way towards them.

"Jonas, report." Jack whispered as he came up behind him.  
"I heard someone in the forest, but it's gone now." Jonas replied in his normal speaking voice, taking no precautions that he had been previously.

"You heard someone?" Sam asked.

Jonas nodded, "And I knew who it was, sort of. I've heard them before."

"Them?" Jack questioned.

"Yeah, there were two voices in there."

Coris looked back to the forest cautiously and kept a stony gaze on the tree-line as though she were expecting company at any moment.

Jonas could still hear the clicking noise, he saw that Coris too heard it, the only ones who didn't were the rest of SG-1. He was curious as to why he and Coris were the only ones able to hear the sound.

The voices were gone, and Jonas moved in closer, followed by the remainder of the team and Coris. At the tree-line he peered into the brush to see if he could see anything. When he did, he caught a brief glimpse of a flash of green somewhere inside.

"There, there did you see that?" Jonas exclaimed.

"Uh...no?" Jack tried, stating the truth.

"It was a flash, a momentary flash of green and it was gone."

"I saw it." Coris spoke up.

Jonas pushed through the trees and was standing on damp ground. A moist, Earthy smell floated about. The forest was definitely dark, no questions asked that was obvious. Dense forest, damp ground, no light to dry the ground therefore it was dark. Only it wasn't.

The green flashed again, more pronounced this time and Jonas moved toward it. He hadn't taken half of a step when the sickly feeling began to wash over him again. His knees wobbled and suddenly he felt like a weak kitten. His stomach lurched, causing a sick feeling to rise in his throat. He choked it back and pressed on, despite his discomfort.

SG-1 pushed in behind him and saw his discomfort however, they didn't feel it yet. They stopped their pursuit.

"Jonas, are you all right?" Sam called after her team-mate. Jonas waved a hand as though to dismiss it, and kept walking, timid step, after timid step before he could go no further.  
The green light flashed again, closer this time and he squinted against its brightness. He felt the presence of Coris close to him and turned to her to see the look of fear and concern on her face.

He lost balance and hit the ground, feeling the sharp pain in his knees as they hit the forest floor. He felt the moisture soak into the knees of his pants as he clutched his churning stomach.

The green light drew nearer. Jonas saw what looked like a portal of sorts form from it, and it continued to move in on him. He cringed against its approach and tried to stand, but he couldn't. His legs didn't want to work.

"Jonas, What is it?" Came Major Carter's voice from nearby. He turned to her and saw she was fine as were Teal'c and Colonel O'Neill.

"You don't feel that?" He forced out past his constricted throat.

They each shook their heads.

"You don't _see_ that?"

"No, are you all right? You look terrible." Jack stated simply coming toward him but, he stopped five feet away as the strange feeling washed over him as well.

"I feel it now." Jack gasped as he hit the ground. The Colonel looked up and saw the green light Jonas had been referring to come towards him.

"And I see it too." He muttered miserably, voicing how he felt.

Jonas didn't answer, he was laying on the ground, sprawled on his back and he couldn't fight anymore. Closing his eyes, he felt a mist fall over him as his skin began to tingle in an electrifying manner and he simply lay there.

Jack began to shiver uncontrollably as an icy feeling took hold of him and he eyed the approaching threat silently, fighting to stay in control of his pain.

"Sir!" Sam yelled as Jack fell limply to his stomach.

"Carter. Stay back, you and Teal'c get out of this forest and stay as far away as you can. I'll find a way to get Jonas and me out of this, somehow." Jack replied as loud as he was able.

The Major hesitated, but with one final urge from Jack, she agreed to leave and did so.

The Colonel pulled himself over the damp ground to where Jonas lay nearly unconscious and shook him with what strength he could muster.

"Jonas, C'mon, get up, we're getting outta here." The Colonel stated.  
Coris came and knelt next to them, her blue eyes sparkling nervously.

"He can't hear you Jack. I already tried." She replied, her voice cold.

The green portal type thing drew nearer and Jack felt a mist cover him as his body began tingling.

Darkness exploded around him and he gave into the beckoning call. He gave in to the sick feeling in his stomach, Colonel O'Neill passed out.


	17. Truth Revealed

**Chapter 17: Truth Revealed**

Jonas was shivering. The icy pain was back in his chest again and he swallowed the sick feeling forcing its way past his throat and sighed uncomfortably, wincing as chill gripped his chest.

He was vaguely aware of damp beneath him and darkness around him as he lifted his eyelids. He was also aware of another presence nearby although, he couldn't pinpoint where.

Shuffling to his left, he turned his head and squinted into the darkness. Coris appeared from the dark, illuminating the area in and eerie gold light. She had her hair down and it fell past her shoulders in auburn curls, her deep blue to violet eyes glittered in the gold and she smiled.

Jonas regarded her curiously, she looked different, older perhaps but, there was no doubt it was her. She straightened her light-blue dress that swept about her ankles and knelt next to Jonas.

"Coris?" Jonas croaked meekly, his throat feeling parched and lungs feeling constricted.

His visitor nodded silently and reached a gentle hand out to touch his cheek.

Jonas flinched away from it uncomfortably and gasped as his lungs turned cold yet again.

"Are you cold Jonas?" Coris asked, her childlike melody still present.

"Freezing." Jonas stated and wrapped his arms around himself to keep heat in.

"Your job isn't done yet."

"What do you mean?"

"My village is still destroyed, or rather, it _was_ destroyed, and you couldn't help to stop it."

"It was destroyed?"

Coris nodded and her eyes brimmed with tears.

"Everyone, gone."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know _how_ to stop it."

"It probably couldn't have been stopped anyway."

"Then why are we still here? Where _is_ here?" Jonas wondered.

"How am I supposed to know? I just came along for the ride." Coris replied.

OOO

Colonel O'Neill became aware of voices from nearby, familiar voices and he turned his head to face them.

The gold illumination was back, as was the cold, not to mention the dark, he squinted into it, and was able to make out the shapes of two people. One was laying on the ground, the other kneeling next to the first.

Jonas was on the ground, he knew that much. The other one...she looked so familiar. He pushed himself to sit and shivered in the chill and wet.

"Surely there's something more you can do." The woman was saying softly.

"I don't see what while we're here, wherever here is." Jonas spoke.

Jack shakily pushed himself to his feet, he still felt awful, but he pushed it aside as best as he could and walked into the light.

OOO

Jonas heard grunting and shuffling coming toward him, and turned to face a very pale looking Colonel O'Neill as he moved towards them.

Jonas sat up quickly, regretting it as nausea overtook him and he fought for control over himself. Control came, slowly, but it did come and he was glad when it did.

"Colonel, you look awful." Jonas voiced, just above a whisper.

"However I look, I can guarantee I feel ten times worse. You shouldn't be talkin' anyway, you aren't the walking picture of health yourself." O'Neill replied, slowly lowering himself to the ground to sit.

Coris watched the exchange between the two men silently until O'Neill turned to her and yelled out.

"Hey, woah! What're _you_ doing here?" Jack exclaimed, immediately recognizing the woman as the one from the forest, the first night they were there.

"Colonel, you know her." Jonas told him carefully.

"Yeah I know her! She's the psycho who tried to attack you that I shot! Okay, so I tried to shoot, it went through her." Jack replied, his voice rising.

Coris backed up suddenly at O'Neill's outburst and her violet eyes began to glitter menacingly.  
"No, no! Colonel it's Coris." Jonas exclaimed. Then he looked to her and saw the glint in her eyes and his face twisted into that of shock, and puzzlement.

"It's your fault my village was destroyed!" She yelled.

"You said it was _your_ fault and you wanted our help to _stop_ it!" Jack yelled.

The temperature around them plummeted suddenly, and both O'Neill and Quinn began shivering violently as the chill bit into them. A fierce wind began to howl, making it that much colder and the gold light from Coris turned bright crimson.

"You have no idea who you're dealing with, do you? I didn't need help to _stop_ the disaster, I needed help to _cause_ it and you provided me with that. That green light you saw it was my doing, I caused it to destroy my village.

"It needs fuel to grow and spread and you two are providing it. Ever wonder why you began to feel sick every time you neared the forest? It's the light, it's living and it feeds off of heat and in doing so throws other systems off balance, that's why you felt that way every time you neared the forest." Coris was shouting now and the wind had picked up considerably.

The Colonel and Jonas were backing away, shivering against the wind. Only hours ago, Coris had been an innocent child, pleading for help.

"See what you get for helping people, Jonas?" Jack yelled above the wind.

Jonas looked at him in alarm, "Remind me to never do it again." He called.

"Consider it done. Now I suggest we get the hell outta here! If there _is _a way out!" O'Neill yelled back.

The two men clambered to their feet and took off in no particular direction, they just wanted to get away. Behind them they could hear shouts of agony and rage from Coris as she pursued them.

The thought dawned on the two members of SG-1 that at the rate they were going, and the way they felt, they may not get out of this in one piece. If they _did_ manage to get out, who knew what kinds of miracles Dr. Fraser would have to perform.

Jonas slowed as the familiar feeling of an ice spear being shoved through him once again became present and yanked his energy, what he had left anyway away from him.

He stumbled over nothing in particular and would've fallen if O'Neill hadn't seen the move and moved in to catch him.

"C'mon Jonas, move!" Jack ordered. He tugged the younger man to his feet and practically dragged him along.

Ahead of them, Jack caught glimpse of a small building, glowing in white, and adjusted his course to head there, pulling a weakened Jonas with him.

Whether it was safe or not, it was the only choice they had as of now, unless they wanted to become fuel for a weapon of mass destruction.

Jonas struggled to help as much as he could, amidst the shooting pain he was feeling and pushed himself to help the Colonel.

"Jonas!" Jack yelled, frustration eminent in his voice as he felt Jonas sag beneath him.

Images flashed through his head, images of dark, of water, of fire. Jonas felt the cold, he felt the wind and he felt the water. His lungs froze and left him gasping, he coughed against it and pain coursed through him.

His legs began weakening, and his knees would no longer hold his weight as he felt himself falling and being held up.

"Jonas!" A frustrated O'Neill yelled.

_'I'm sorry, colonel. I can't help it, I'm trying, really I am.'_ Jonas thought helplessly.

Jack heard Jonas gasp and begin to cough. He lifted him onto his back. The cabin was close now, he stopped in front of the door, falling against it to open it, and he and Jonas landed in a heap on the other side.

He rolled Jonas onto his back and saw he had lost consciousness.

_'Damn!'_ O'Neill thought.

O'Neill got to his feet and forced the wooden door shut, slivers lodging into his hand as he did so.

"They really should sand a wooden door if someone's going to force it shut!" O'Neill yelled aloud, then he realized how stupid that had just sounded and dismissed it as he sank to the floor next to Jonas to await the young man's waking.

"Great, now what?" He asked the walls around him.

Out of nowhere, the sound of tortured screaming from what sounded like hundreds, surrounded him and he cried out in alarm as the sounds grew louder, and that could only mean one thing, they were also getting closer...


	18. The Big Picture, or Part of it

**Chapter 18: The Big Picture, or Part of it...**.

The screams continued to grow louder as they continued to get closer and out of nowhere, two men appeared, followed by a backdrop of screams and terrorized shouts.

_'This can_not_ be a good thing.' _Jack thought to himself, keeping his eyes glued to the two newcomers advancing on him and Jonas.

"Okay, hold it right there guys, keep your distance huh?" Jack called to them. It didn't appear that they were listening, or if they were they conveniently chose not to comply.

The two came to rest nearby and changed their directions to head towards Jonas who was out cold on the floor. They dropped next to him and began speaking to one another silently.

Jack moved in. "Y'know, it's not polite to whisper." He told them. They looked up, and Jack locked onto one of their gazes. It was an intense green-eyed stare. Jack shuddered as it sent chills down his spine.

These two didn't strike him as good news.

Jonas began to stir, groaning ever so slightly as he fought his way back to consciousness. Jack pushed by the two people and he kneeled next to his waking friend.

OOO

Jonas slowly opened his eyes and came face to face with three different pairs of eyes. Dark brown, that had to be Colonel O'Neill, light blue...he didn't know them, and then he looked into the final gaze and cringed in fear. Deep green, and intense, so familiar, and he knew exactly where from. His previous tormentor was back.

Jonas let out a strangled cry as he went into panic. Images began flashing through his mind accompanied by feelings of fear, cold, and panic. He watched the images closely. Coris was there, her piercing eyes glittering menacingly.

She yelled out in both anger and frustration. She was tied to a stone and forced to the edge of a cliff, her light blue dress flowing about, brunette curls being blown in five different directions.

It was the same cliff that she had taken him to the time she introduced him to the terror her village would face.

He was standing in a sea of people, faces merging into one another, faces filled with fear, with determination and with triumph. It was an odd sort of mix, but he surveyed it fully.

It was dark, he was only able to see from the various torches placed around, but yet it seemed like there was more light than just that.

From the cliff edge, Coris began chanting menacingly, her eyes glinting more than ever. Lightning dashed through the sky overhead, striking a nearby tree and sending it into flames.

A bone-chilling wind picked up, biting into him and he began shivering against it.

"All of you will suffer for this. All of you!" Coris shouted and her gaze locked on Jonas as she broke into a threatening smile.

Jonas backed up slightly, bumping into someone. He turned and was met by the sharp gaze of green that he had been so afraid of before.

"Do it." Called a man over the roaring wind and another man, the executioner, shoved Coris over the edge. Her screams could be heard for miles as Jonas shielded his ears to block it out.

From nowhere the storm picked up with more force. Jonas stared wide-eyed, and open mouthed at what was rising from the cliff ravine.

The sickly feeling groped him again, with more force, and he fell to his knees amongst the crowd of people. He blinked hard, to stop the world from spiraling out of proportion and swallowed the lump in his throat.

Looking up, he saw people shouting in pain and closing in on him. Above the sheet of people, he saw something worse...

OOO

Sam lingered near the forest after receiving the order to leave from Colonel O'Neill. She was reluctant to leave and wouldn't have if she and Teal'c hadn't been pried away and hurtled back into the dark, cold silence in front of the shadow of the looming gate.

"What was that?" Sam asked, shaking her head as the feeling of disorientation passed.

"I do not know, Major Carter, but it would appear we are back to where we began." Teal'c stated.

"So it would seem."

Teal'c looked stoically around the gate area, and when satisfied that there was no call for danger turned back to Sam who seemed to be lost in deep thought.

"Major Carter, what is it that you are thinking of?" Teal'c asked.

Sam jumped at the sound of his voice and turned back to him.  
"Sorry, you startled me."

"It was not my intention to do so."

"Don't worry about it. I was just thinking if we should try the gate again to call for backup, or if we should go after Colonel O'Neill and Jonas ourselves."

"Calling for back-up may not be the wisest choice about now, Sam." Came a familiar voice from her right.

Sam turned to face the voice. Dr. Jackson stood there, regarding her through blue eyes, concern etched all over his features.

"Unless we're going to burst in after them, we really have no choice." Sam replied, not missing a beat, as though the appearance of Daniel hadn't even phased her, after all they'd been through on this mission, nothing phased her anymore.

"No, I mean it Sam, don't call for backup."

"Why do you not wish us to call in another team Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked.

"It's Jonas. He's reliving the destruction of this planet's inhabitants and calling for another team would anger Coris and break the link between he and the past. There's no telling what kind of damage that would cause him." Daniel stated, matter-of-factly.

"How do you know Coris?" Sam asked suspiciously.

"Like I said before, I've been watching you guys to be sure you didn't get in over your heads."

"Then why didn't you come sooner? We're already in over our heads. Colonel O'Neill and Jonas were taken somewhere and now you're saying Jonas is reliving the mass disaster. What about the Colonel? What part does he play in this?" Sam questioned.

"He is helping to fuel the disaster, he and Jonas both and they really have no choice in the matter."

"Are you also saying that the child we were asked to help is not as innocent as we first suspected Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. Coris, isn't who you thought she was. The innocence, it was an act to gain trust. Once she got the trust, as she did from Jonas, she used it to her advantage to wipe out an entire civilization." Jackson stated.

"Then, we've got to do something to stop it." Sam replied.

**  
**


	19. Messages and Understanding

**  
**

**Chapter 19: Messages and Understanding**

Major Carter looked at Daniel, he was all but joking in this matter, and it made her slightly uneasy to consider what he had just said.

The wind picked up and she still stood, making no move to warm herself.

Daniel and Teal'c looked on as she digested the information and then, just like that Sam regained control and moved over to the DHD.

"Sam, what're you doing?" Daniel asked.

"Sending a message through to General Hammond to report our situation and tell him to _not_ send any backup." Sam replied simply and began pushing in the address buttons.

Each chevron encoded and to everyone's surprise the seventh locked and the gate exploded in a wave of blue and settled in.

She sent through her code, although she had no intentions of going through. She was going after her missing team-mates.

OOO

General Hammond waited for the code before opening the iris.

"We've got a signal sir, it's SG-1." Replied the techie.

"They must've gotten through again. Open the iris."

The iris was opened, and Major Carter's voice floated through.

"General, we have a situation here." Sam replied getting right to the point.

"Major Carter, what's your situation." Hammond greeted, his breath catching as he heard the word _situation_.

"Sir, Colonel O'Neill and Jonas have been captured, sort of." Sam stated.

"I thought you said there was nothing but...ghosts there, Major." Hammond stated, slightly uncomfortable.  
"Yes Sir, there are ghosts. We met one, a child, her name was Coris. She took us to what seemed like back through time to when the planet was as it appeared on our first investigation with the MALP."

"Back in time? Are you certain the sun just didn't come up? Are you sure this Coris _is_ a ghost?"

"Positive Sir. And yes, I believe the child is a ghost. She took us to the edge of a forest and the Colonel and Jonas went in further then we did, and something went wrong. Colonel O'Neill told Teal'c and me to get as far away from the forest as possible."

"And you went, just like that?"

"No. Sir, we weren't intending to, but we were transported back to the gate before we could take action."

"So now, Colonel O'Neill and Jonas are in the forest?" Hammond asked, clearly confused.

"I don't know General. Don't send backup, we're going after them." Sam stated quickly.

"Are you sure you don't want backup? Your situation seems serious." Hammond asked.

"Positive." Sam answered quickly.

"Very well Major, bring them back, and good luck." Hammond replied, he wasn't even going to _attempt_ and argue at that, it'd be no use anyway, the way they were going it wouldn't have done much good to send another team.

"I'll try to check back later, if I get the chance. Carter out." Sam replied and the link was cut.

General Hammond stood at the window, shaking his head in disbelief and turned back.

"I'm not even going to_ try_ and understand what was just said. Let's just hope everything goes all right." The General stated.

"Yes Sir." The tech replied, turning back to the computer screen.

OOO

"Well, that was easier then I thought it would be." Sam replied.

Daniel had the ghost of a smile on his face, amused at the conversation that he had just overheard.  
"What?" Sam asked.

"Nothing, nothing at all. Listen, I have to go. Good luck." Daniel replied.

"Hey, before you leave do me a favor. If you get the chance, check up on the Colonel and Jonas, let us know where they are?" Sam suggested.

"I'll do my best." Jackson replied and with that he vanished.

"Let's go, Teal'c." Sam stated.

"Very well, Major Carter." Was the answer she received, and they walked off in search of the two missing people.

OOO

Jack watched Jonas closely. He had slipped back into oblivion. The two men were still there and Jack reached out to grab the attention of one.

He brought his hand slowly down on the man's shoulder and felt like he was touching ice. The man turned towards him and stared coldly at him.

"Hey, mind telling me what's going on?" Jack asked, ignoring the gaze he was receiving, despite the alert it hit in him.

"He is experiencing what we once did." Replied the blue-eyed man. His voice was gravelly, and rough, sounding like bike tires on dirt, and Jack breathed deeply to force down fright.

"So that means what? You're gonna have to tell me,_ I_ can't get inside his head and find out for myself." O'Neill stated simply, watching his unconscious team-member.

"I cannot."

"All right, can ya let me in on what's with that kid chasing after us?" Jack asked.

"I can." And then there was silence.

"Well?"

"Coris was a pleasant child, until she changed."

"Changed?"

"Yes, she developed abilities, got into dark power, and it consumed her, but not before she destroyed us all."

"Destroyed? She said she needed help to cause something and she's using Jonas and I to power her weapon of mass destruction thingy."

"She is. She's using your heat."

"And in doing so, it throws everything else outta whack. Got that, _experienced_ it to be precise, not fun."

"Then you know the story."

"Mostly, yeah." Jack replied casually.

"Then why must I explain it?"

"_What_ exactly are we helping to cause?"

"Coris caused a green light with what power she had left before we executed her, and it sent fire from the sky and great waves of water to overtake us. Everyone was killed."

"Oh." O'Neill stated.

"You have to try to overcome the curse she has drug you and your friend into, or it will destroy you as well." The blue-eyed man replied in his gravelly voice.

Jack's gaze drifted to where Jonas lay, twisting and turning as though he were trapped in a nightmare. For all Jack knew, he very well could've been...


	20. Search Your Memory

**  
**

**Chapter 20: Search Your Memory**

Jonas stared up at the sky and saw a twisting whirlpool of green light above them, his breath caught in his chest as he witnessed it.

Weakness continued to wash over him and he tried his best to fight it, but wasn't quite as successful as he had first hoped to be. After attempting to stand, he immediately hit the ground again and he hit hard, the breath being forced out of him in a strangled choke.

This did _not_ seem to be one of the best days he'd ever had.

He gasped, as he tried to suck in as much air as he could, which sadly wasn't much amidst his heaving diaphragm. Nevertheless, he pushed himself back to his feet slowly and backed away from the whirlpool above.

It began raining then, a terrestrial downpour. Huge drops of rain fell, gaining potential with every strike, and within no time at all, Jonas was soaked and shivering. Lightening flashed across the sky, followed by a loud, echoing clap of thunder. Jonas cringed against the echo.

OOO

Jack watched Jonas closely, as he had been for the past few moments after just previously meeting a ghost. When he turned back to address the ghost who he'd spoken with he was surprised to find that he and Jonas were alone in the tiny room, lit in a spooky, pale white glow.

"After this, I am _never_ watching another spooker movie, _never_!" O'Neill mused to himself, mainly to break the silence, but also to be sure he wouldn't forget that goal.

He scooted over to where Jonas lay twisting and turning on the floor, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling that had continued to wash over him.

"And I'm _never_ complaining about a slight cold again, this has _got_ to be worse then any cold I've experienced. And if the temperature drops by a few degrees, who cares? I will be able to say truthfully that I've experienced _way _worse." Jack continued talking to himself, making a list of things he'd never do again when Jonas inhaled sharply, startling him.

He shook the unconscious man slightly. "Jonas." He replied.

It didn't help much, nothing really changed, Jonas's position, slightly, but other than that, nothing.  
From far off, he heard thunder clapping and raindrops hitting, and he knew they were in for another storm. He looked up at the roof, hoping that it would hold up and not leak, but not really expecting it to do his wishes and instead he sighed and moved to the door, casting another glance over his shoulder before pulling the door open and sneaking a gaze out.

The forest was dark again, no sign of Coris in her mad search. That suited Jack just fine.

He felt a light breeze sift in through the doorway and blow past him, brushing against him as it passed, he shivered against it. He closed his eyes as the wind, gaining force hit him, and breathed it in to calm his stomach. It worked for a sheer second and then the feeling was back again and seemed to carry with it more force. He grimaced against it, before opening his eyes once again.

"Colonel O'Neill?" The voice was weak, but it was there, and it was coming from behind him. Jonas was awake.

O'Neill turned to where Jonas lay on the floor, head turned towards him and he smiled before making his way over to his team-member and pushing the door shut behind him.

"Welcome back." Jack replied, quietly.

Jonas regarded him in confusion for a slight second. "Where did I go?" He asked.

Jack had to laugh. "You didn't _go_ anywhere, Jonas. Did you?" Jack raised his eyebrows in question and waited for his reply.

"I...uh, I don't know to be exact. I was somewhere, but it wasn't here. I don't remember right where I was, but I remember everything else. The execution, the cold, the odd feeling, that green light. Thunder, lightening and rain, lots of rain and wind. Oh and there were a lot of people around me too, the man with the green eyes was there and the other villagers as well. I think they were the villagers, but I don't remember _where_ I was." Jonas rambled.

"Uh huh, execution?" Jack replied, pressing a hand against his churning stomach. He noticed Jonas was experiencing the same discomfort as he was, but didn't say anything.

"Yes Colonel, Coris's execution." Jonas stated simply.

"Uh huh." Jack replied quietly.

Jack felt the presence of another person long before he saw that person or even before that person said anything and he turned to face a very concerned looking Dr. Jackson.

Daniel was standing next to the wall, arms crossed, dressed in a white sweater and khaki white pants and he was regarding the two men sympathetically.

"How're you two holding out?" Daniel asked softly.  
"Holding out? Holding out? You have _no_ idea what we're going through." Jack replied stunned.

"No, you're right I don't. This light that Coris created isn't affecting me, because I'm not really here." Daniel replied solemnly. He walked towards them and knelt next to Jonas who had managed to lift himself into a semi-sitting position, but hadn't made it any further, and Daniel was also on Colonel O'Neill's right.

"You know Coris?" Jack asked, rasping to choke back the nausea that threatened to overwhelm him.

"Well, um no, I don't know her, but I do know _of_ her and what she's been putting you all through, especially you Jonas. And I know how you can stop this, but it includes your cooperation." Daniel replied turning to Jonas.

Jonas looked at him through stunned eyes and nodded slowly. "I'll do what I can, Dr. Jackson, just tell me what I need to do."

"You have to remember where you are when you experience these memories and flashbacks. I know you can't remember, but in order for this to work, you have to search your memory Jonas, for the answers you need."

"Why?"

"Wherever this place is, it's the very seat of Coris's energy and she can only be stopped from there."

"Daniel, you're a ghost, go and...uh... _mingle_ with the spirit world and help Jonas out a little bit." Jack stated from where he was seated on the floor.

"I can't Jack, I'm not a ghost, how many times have I told you that?"

Jack was silent as he tried to think of something to say.

"A lot." Daniel finished for him.

"And I still don't quite believe you. Look around Daniel! Dark, cold planet. '_Ghost _planet' if you will. And you just happen to be here with the other ghosts? Ya gotta admit, it looks a little, oh shall we say _off_?"

Daniel sighed but, let it drop.

"Okay, for your amusement, let's just _say_ I'm a ghost. Do you honestly think Coris would want to have anything to do with me if she knew I was your friend, and needed information to help you stop a disaster that _she_ created in the first place?"  
"Yeah...no probably not." Jack replied, it sounded different when it was put _that_ way.

Jack turned back to Jonas who had all of a sudden become very silent and O'Neill wanted to know why.

What he saw was a very _pale_ looking Jonas Quinn who seemed to be very _deep_ in thought and he moved over to him.

"Jonas?" He asked.

Silence.

"Jonas!" He yelled this time, loud enough to wake the dead, and Jonas seemed to have a momentary relapse in memory, blinked and looked around in confusion.

"Sorry Colonel, I still don't remember." Jonas replied, looking at his commander blearily.

"Think Jonas. Forget everything else, and just _think_. It's the only way." Daniel replied in encouragement.

Jonas's eyes glazed over momentarily, and he pitched back and would've hit his head if it hadn't been for O'Neill's gentle catch.

"Jonas! Jonas, wake up." Jack replied.

Seconds dragged on and turned into minutes that seemed to stretch into hours, and finally Jonas seemed to snap out of it, after about seven agonizing minutes, he opened his eyes, blinked wearily and sat up quickly, despite Jack's gentle restrain.

"I got it Colonel! Dr. Jackson, I remember the place!" Jonas cried triumphantly and both Jack and Daniel broke into a smile at the regain of memory.


	21. From Excitement to Fear

**Chapter 21: Excitement Can Turn to Fear in The Blink of an Eye**

Jonas was giddy with excitement. He remembered what he'd only glimpsed in flashes for short minutes at a time and he felt good about it.

Colonel O'Neill was looking at him in the regular '_Jack_' way, and he seemed skeptical, not unusual for O'Neill, but still.

Jonas switched his gaze to Dr. Jackson and saw he was smiling freely at this new-found memory, blue eyes twinkling gladly and Jonas, who was already smiling, stretched his grin until it was even more noticeable than it had been previously.

"You remember?" Daniel asked, his feelings, being brought to a peak in the tone of his voice.

"Yes, it's that place there. It's where she took me the first time, and then the same place where she took all of us." Jonas replied, turning to Jack and forgetting all about the odd feeling sweeping over him. It'd been there for a while, so he was becoming accustomed to it, and was getting pretty good at shaking it off if he needed to.

"That huge _cliff_ she made us climb?" Jack asked in disbelief.

Jonas nodded eagerly and pushed himself to his feet, restraining himself from wobbling too badly and he started toward the door.

"Jonas, wait." Jack called.

He stopped and turned back to where he was being called.

"Yes, Colonel?" he asked innocently.

"That _cliff_?" Jack asked again.

"Yes, Colonel." Jonas was still standing, watching O'Neill's reactions as they passed over his face and to his surprise, he found the variance of emotions to be quite amusing.

"We gotta climb it _again_?" O'Neill questioned, thinking back to the steep hill littered with rocks that dug into your skin as you climbed and the amount of energy it took and he groaned silently to himself.

Jonas merely nodded and waited.

Daniel stepped in then, taking Jonas's side and spoke up.

"Jack, we've got to get there if you want to get off this...'_rock_' as you seem to enjoy putting it. It's up to you, come or stay." Daniel asked, clearly voicing in his tone that he'd rather the Colonel come with them.  
"Alright, I'm coming." Jack stated, pushing the argument that he wanted to voice back so he could save it for later.

"Let's get going." Jonas replied, pulling the door open and vanishing into the night.

Jack and Daniel followed, and made their way, through the dark, and to the cliff base.

The trek there was relatively simple, despite the darkness and the fact that Jack was expecting Coris to jump out at them at any given second. However, he was relieved when nothing along those lines took course.

Staring up at the mass of rock called a '_hill_', Jack puffed air through his lips and rubbed his hand along the back of his neck, pushing down the sick feeling he'd become so accustomed to, and braving the danger to take the chance at following Jonas up the cliff.

About halfway up, he realized Daniel hadn't followed them.

"Why?" Jack yelled up to Jonas.

"Pardon?" Came his reply.

"Why couldn't Daniel just zap us up there, it seems obvious that that's what he's allowed _himself_ to do. And, he left us to scale the cliff!" Jack shouted.

"We're almost there Colonel, not much further now, and I'd call it a steep hill to be more precise." Jonas called back down, ignoring O'Neill's previous comment about the powers of Daniel's _zapping_.

"Whatever Jonas, just...climb." Jack yelled.

"Yes, Sir."

Mere moments into the re-start of the descent, Jonas felt something odd, yet familiar wash over him, and he gripped the rock hill so tight, his knuckles turned white.

He was thrown back through time, back to the execution and the destruction and the scene was clearer, stronger and felt more real than it had ever felt before.

OOO

Coris was pushed off, the boulder weighing her down, blue dress trailing her. Brunette curls being recklessly tossed about. He felt the wind bite into him, and waft through his clothes. He wrapped his arms around himself to keep in heat but, wasn't surprised when it didn't seem to work.

She yelled out then, and it rang in his ears making his blood run cold and bones vibrate.  
It was a horrid scream, filled with frustration and anger, and Jonas even thought he detected a hint of revenge deep within, consuming whatever was left of her childish tone.

Then came the green pool, the lightening danced in electrifying steps across the darkened sky and the thunder rolled from nearby. Rain fell, pelting him with stabbing droplets that soaked him to the bone and caused his clothing to cling to him in what seemed like a damp sheet and Jonas continued to shake in the chill.

The green light advanced on him, hovering above him, and he gaped up at it in terror, because he knew what it was, it was Coris's revenge, her final spell. One that would bring destruction upon her people for what they had just done to her, if she was going down, she made sure she would be going out with a bang.

The sick feeling passed over Jonas, and hit him from his head to his feet but, it was different this time. It felt like sharp shots of fire, followed closely by ice coursing through his entire body. He fell to his knees, hitting with enough force to bruise, and he yelled out in alarm.

Around him fire exploded. Shouts and screams of terror, as well as pain filled his ears. The screams of dying people, Coris's people, dying at her hand, and all he could do was sit there, on his knees, biting back pain and nausea as it threatened to overtake him.

Then, just as quick as he'd been thrown into the past, he was yanked back from it and found himself once again climbing the hill, only he was frozen stiff, knuckles gripping, turning white, and he felt the pain he'd been feeling only seconds before. He yelled out into the darkness.


	22. Caught in The Clutches of Torment

**Chapter 22: In The Clutches of Torment**

Jack had heard Jonas yell and he looked up in the direction of the shout. As he squinted into the dusty darkness, he noticed Jonas, about five feet ahead of him. The young man was stopped and unmoving. Jack could hear his sharp breathing as he neared him.

"Jonas?" O'Neill regarded him curiously, face splashed with concern.

Jonas continued his labored breathing and Jack reached out and lay a gentle hand on his shoulder to bring him out of his trance.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked quietly.

"It was so real Colonel, so real." Jonas whispered, he sounded terrified.

"What was Jonas?"

"She was executed, pushed over the edge. Colonel, she did something, a chant that opened a green portal type thing. There was lightening, and...and rain. The green light, I was its target..." Jonas's frightened voice began to trail.

"Who was executed?"

"Coris."

"That creepy little kid?"

Jonas nodded silently but, vigorously as he confirmed Jack's assumption. At that moment the wind picked up, screaming around them, chewing into their clothes and making them shiver. Jack sat on the hillside, watching the unmoving Jonas through worried brown eyes that caught a glare of a light coming from somewhere. That somewhere was above them, on the cliff-top.

Minutes that seemed like hours crept past slowly as Jonas fought to regain control over his emotions and trembling hands that gripped the hill side.

At long last, Jonas felt ready to proceed and drug himself further up the cliff, slowly, but he was determined to reach the top and wouldn't let anything get in the way of him doing so.

Jack watched him in sympathy, the kid had been through a lot since the gate spit them out on this rock, and Jack knew he'd need some extensive R&R upon arrival back at the base. Until they got back though, he wasn't going to argue with him and so, followed him in his slow trek up the hillside.

OOO

Sam sunk to the ground next to what she would've liked to call a fire, but sadly it hadn't worked out quite as planned.

She wondered why they hadn't thought of fire when they first arrived and drew the conclusion that had they have been in different circumstances, it would've crossed their minds.

True, the attempt at fire would've failed miserably anyway, Sam had found that out as she tried to nurse a tiny spark into a means of light and warmth. The fire refused to start, every time she thought she was getting close, the fire would die and leave her and Teal'c in total darkness again.

"Remind me again why we're trying to make a fire? We should be looking for Colonel O'Neill and Jonas." Sam replied to Teal'c.

"We will be of no help to either of them without rest, and your body temperature has dropped critically since we began searching, Major Carter." Teal'c replied from somewhere in the dark.

Sam bit her lip as she continued to keep holding back the chills she kept getting. Hot chocolate sounded good about now, but she had to keep searching.

"It's no use Teal'c, the fire isn't going to start. Let's keep searching." Sam said through chattering teeth.

"We will not find them." Teal'c stated.

Carter's brow creased at that statement, and she got slowly to her feet, looking in the direction Teal'c had spoken from.

The Jaffa emerged from the shadows and his face was a mask of hate, something Carter knew couldn't be a good sign. She began backing away, slowly at first, then gradually increasing her speed as she backed up.

Teal'c kept up her pace, staying no less than two feet away from her.

She felt herself back into something solid and turned around. She was staring into piercing grey eyes, face hidden behind a black mask. Her instincts kicked in at full force as she whipped around to face Teal'c, only to be met by someone totally different in his place.

The person closing in on her was a woman, brunette curls being pulled every way by the wind that had suddenly picked up. Her violet eyes were filled with hatred and anger and she wore a sly smile on her face. She folded her arms across her chest, smoothing the pale blue dress that danced about her.

Sam turned back to the grey eyes, they were still hidden behind a mask, making it impossible to make out the face of her silent tormentor. Then she turned back to the woman who had come to a halt, less than a foot from her and was staring viciously at her.  
"What do you want?" Sam spat venomously, her voice quavering with fear.

"Me? What could a child like me _possibly_ want?" The woman before her morphed into the small form of Coris, the blue dress still floating about her, shrinking to her new size. The child pushed a curl behind her ear and continued to smile. Not at her, but over her shoulder to the man behind her.

Sam jumped back and was seized by strong arms from behind, she let out a startled yelp and turned her head to look into the face of the masked grey eyes, her blue eyes widened in fright as the grip on her tightened, digging into her middle, and pushing the air out of her.

"You know what Sam?" Coris questioned slyly, her childish tone concealed in raspiness and warning.

Sam looked at her, through a venomous glare.

"What?" Carter asked, threateningly.

"I think you're much more trouble than what you're worth. We have to do something about that." Coris snarled.

Sam squirmed in the grip holding her to no avail.

"Take her to the cliff top, we'll get her to calm the trouble she's causing us." Coris said, smiling evilly. That's the only way that it could be explained, an evil smile, coming from the most innocent form, a child.

Sam struggled against her captor.

"I hope everyone's up for seeing an execution. We'll put _her_ through the same fate_ I_ was put through. Let's see how she feels about her desperate soul wondering this god-forsaken place for an eternity..." Coris laughed, musically, as she skipped ahead, beckoning for the executioner to follow, Sam still helpless in his clutches...


	23. The Feeling of Falling

**Chapter 23: The Feeling of Falling**

Jonas continued to climb, Colonel O'Neill following closely behind him. The wind was still gnawing on them and there was still a strange feeling washing over them as Jonas made the final push to end up on the cliff-top. He lay there, panting and shaking in the chill before forcing himself to sit up next to Jack.

From nowhere, Daniel appeared and looked each of them over.

"Daniel, so nice of you to join us. You couldn't lend a hand back there?" Jack jabbed his thumb over his shoulder towards the cliff drop.

"You seemed to be doing just fine Jack, besides there was really nothing I could've done anyway." Daniel replied.

Jack rolled his eyes and sighed.

"We made it up alive, now what?" O'Neill asked looking around in the dimly lit darkness.

"You wait." Daniel said.

"Uh huh, for what?"

"I don't know, all I know is that you must wait."

"Just don't pull your little vanishing act you seem to enjoy so much, we are _not_ waiting here in the dark and the cold all alone."

"I'll stay as long as I can." Daniel stood still, watching Jonas and Jack closely as they tried to decide what would come next.

OOO

Major Carter was still struggling when an odd sensation washed over her. She felt as though she was being disassembled and re-assembled over, and over, and over again and it was highly disturbing.

Then just as soon as it had come, it was gone and she was atop a cliff, in a flowing blue dress, with a stone tied around her ankles on a chain. The wind was blowing wildly, tossing her blonde hair about and she was shivering. The thin strapped dress didn't provide much protection against the cold and the wind passed through the material.

A feeling of fear and caution bubbled up in the pit of her stomach as she gazed wildly around, feeling the strong grasp of her executioner, knotting a rope around her wrists so she had no use of her hands.  
Coris stood by, still in the form of a child, she looked on in sheer amusement, eyes ablaze with anger and hatred. She was illuminated in a green light that gave her a mist-like appearance that was almost opaque.

Sam grimaced against the tightness of the restraints around her wrists and she felt a rough shove as she was forced ahead, despite the chain about her ankles which made it extremely difficult to move.

As she stopped, she had a clear view of the sight below her, it was easily a 75-foot drop, straight to the bottom, where a deep pool of water shimmered in the darkness. She heard the soothing sound of a water fall cascading over the rocks and she felt the mist from it cling to her cheeks in a gentle, almost soothing manner. Amidst it all she fought her captor to the best of her abilities, she was _not_ going to go over the cliff edge easily.

OOO

Jack heard commotion from nearby, and peered around the rock he and Jonas had taken refuge behind. Coris was there, illuminated in a green light, and there were two others there as well. A man in dark clothing and...Sam.

She was dressed in a flowing blue gown, that pooled about her. A chain was peeking out from the hem of the dress skirt, and on the chain was an oversized boulder.

O'Neill squirmed uncomfortably in place as he watched what was happening, he couldn't just sit there while Sam was shoved to her death, there had to be something he could do.

"Colonel, what's happening?" Came Jonas's voice. It was a hoarse rasp in his throat, and Jack couldn't help the chills that crawled over him at the sound of it.

"It's Major Carter, Coris and some other guy." Jack stated.

Jonas was silent as he took in what he'd just heard.

"Huh?" Was all he could come up with. He thought Carter was with Teal'c and he thought Colonel O'Neill had ordered them as far away as they could get.

"She doesn't look like she came willingly. She's chained to a rock. A big rock."

"We've got to do something." Jonas replied silently.

Jack nodded and looked about for the archaeologist that had been tagging along, only to find that he was nowhere in sight.

"Great!" Jack's frustration wasn't disguised as he almost yelled the word, catching himself at the last moment.  
O'Neill made his move, he pushed himself from behind the rock, keeping himself concealed in the shadows that weren't lit up by an eerie light and made his way slowly closer to where Sam was being held.

OOO

Sam felt a familiar presence nearby, a presence she had come to know when someone was there, but not seen. It was that chill that made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and your throat run dry. It was the feeling of a sudden emptiness in the pit of your stomach, and your heart thudding wildly against your rib cage.

She craned her neck around to cover as much area with a single glance as she could. She turned up nothing, if someone really _was_ there, they were doing a damned good job of staying hidden.

Coris moved in toward her, eyes glinting and smile wide. The child stopped to Sam's left and looked over the cliff edge.

"It's far down, isn't it Sam?" Coris replied, stating the obvious.

Sam glared.

"I know. Don't forget I've been over that cliff, it's not fun.

"You know your falling, it's that single, most terrifying feeling of every last foothold being snatched from under you. There's a momentary hover to begin the descent and then you feel nothing, but wind. The wind tears at you as though you are poison to it's well being, it wants to get rid of you as soon as possible, so it makes you fall faster, the stone helping along.

The fall seems to last for an eternity and it scares you half to death. You can see the water rushing up at you, but it takes forever. You just want it all to end as soon as possible but it doesn't.

"When you hit the water, you're alive and it leaps at you like a vicious predator, swallowing you up, and you sink. You can't breathe, you have no time to take a breath before entering. On the way down, you hit things, plants, animals, rocks, that followed you down, whatever else is in there, and you end up looking like this." Before Sam's eyes, Coris transformed into a young woman. Her face was a mangled mess of cuts, scratches, and bruises, her gown clung to her slender frame, and her eyes were hollow and lifeless, but still they glistened.

Sam shuddered involuntarily at what she'd taken in and kept her attention focused on Coris.

"Does it scare you, Samantha?" Coris asked, her childish tone back.

"Why would you think that?" Sam asked, trying to hide the fear it struck in her.  
"Just a guess.

"After hitting the water, you continue to fall until you hit the bottom, the rock sinks into the muck and you can't move. You try to push your way to the surface, but can't because your legs are holding you back and your arms are tied.

"Your lungs start to burn, and you begin to freeze in the chill of the water. Your heart, feels like ice is being passed through it and you think to yourself. _'This is it, it's really over for me._'

"You get weaker, until finally you can't move any longer and you die, your lungs burning, and your heart breaking at the realization that it's all over. Then there's nothing, but dark." Coris replied, her voice trailing.

Sam kept her eyes glued to Coris. The girl's hair fell limply around her face, sticking to her bare shoulders around the thin straps of the dress. The same dress Sam was in. Coris's eyes hollowed until they were dull. Her face grew more mutilated and her skin tone paled considerably to almost white.

Carter shuddered again. She was going to meet the same fate as Coris had, and she was nearly scared to death...


	24. From Memory to Reality

**Chapter 24: From Memory to Reality**

Jack heard what was going on as he drew closer to the action, staying concealed in the shadows. He didn't like the sounds of it, and listening to it sent him into shivers at the thought of Sam being exposed to that sort of danger and death.

He crept closer. When he heard movement behind him, he turned quickly, but quietly and sighed in relief as he saw Jonas stumbling towards him, almost as quiet as he was being.

Jack held up his hand to halt the approaching man and walked back to him. As he drew closer, he could hear Jonas gasping for breath. Jack grabbed the young man's shoulder to avoid him what could've been a nasty fall and a dead give away of their position and helped him to lower to the ground and sit.

"Easy Jonas." Jack whispered, keeping a hand on his shoulder and his attention on both Sam and Jonas at the same time.

"Colonel, they're going to execute the Major." Jonas replied.

"Not if I can help it." Jack replied.

Jack got up, being sure Jonas was all right, and moved closer to the soon-to-be execution of his second in command.

OOO

Sam still felt the presence of someone nearby, and she continued to look when she caught glimpse of the glint of a set of tags, Colonel O'Neill! She breathed deeply, forced herself to tear her attention away from the glint, and back to her tormentor.

"I never mentioned this tiny bit, during the fall, you're hit with stones, and if your path wavers, you hit the cliff wall. That's what I did." Coris's form grew even more tattered as gashes appeared on her cheeks and arms as well as her forehead, and Sam had to turn away.

She was praying for the Colonel to hurry when she heard a strangled cry echoing from close by.

OOO

Jonas felt himself slipping again, and was thrown into another memory, only the person being executed this time was Sam, not Coris and he had to watch it.

He watched as Sam was pushed over, he heard her scream as she fell, and then he felt someone grab him and he was shoved to the cliff edge and forced to look down at the receding form of Major Carter.

"Would you like to join her?" He heard Coris ask from next to him. The tiny child had reached up and taken hold of his hand. Her hand was ice cold.

Jonas couldn't find the words to say, as he watched. He felt himself growing weak and he hit his knees, still looking over the edge.

"You can you know, I have no more need for you. You did your job." Coris replied, kneeling next to him.

A distant splash echoed and Jonas closed his eyes tight. He was living a nightmare, and he wasn't going to wake up from it.

He felt tiny hands give a forceful shove and he was terrified. His last footholds were torn from him and he hovered before plunging, his path weaving. He hit the wall countless times and one hit he felt the ligaments in his shoulder tear, and he yelled out as pain shot through him.

Still he fell, hitting the wall and being pelted with rocks all the way. The wind gashed at him, tearing into his clothes. Then he hit the water, and he hit hard, his injured shoulder was the first to hit, the surface impact jolting it and sending it into flaming pain and then he was pulled under.

The water bit into him and sent ice through his entire body. Realizing he had no rock tied to him he swam with all his might to get to the surface, not wanting to look down, afraid of what he'd see. He had only one good arm, making the venture to the top excruciating. Finally, he burst through the dark surface.

As soon as he reached the top, he felt a pair of hands grab him and pull him back under. He looked down, eyes wide and terrorized. Looking up at him through hollow, lifeless blue eyes, was Major Carter. Her face was mutilated with cuts and bruises and her blonde hair clung to her.

Her complexion was pale and grayed and she held tight to his ankle, dragging him down with her.

He squirmed wildly to no avail and looked back down. Sam's eyes were pleading and lifeless.

"Jonas, help me!" She wailed, her voice sent chills through him. It sounded like haunting bells tolling the time. His time. His time was up, this was it, he'd be no more, and that's what scared him the most...

He yelled out in pain and fright as he felt himself being thrown back into the present and he couldn't hold back the strangled cry that escaped his lips.

He found himself in the same place Jack had set him before going after Carter and he'd just given their cover away.  
Red hot pain shot through his right arm, beginning at his shoulder and going from there, he looked down and touched it gingerly with his other hand and choked back a yelp at the pain he felt.

The ligaments torn in his memory had passed over into the real time and rendered his right arm useless. He sighed heavily, and leaned against the stump behind him.

OOO

Jack cursed aloud at the sound of the strangled cry and leapt behind the closest thing he could find. A tree. Not much help but, it provided some protection.

He looked back from where the yell had come from and saw Jonas leaning against the stump, his right arm limp. His left hand was massaging his forehead, but that's all Jack could make out.

OOO

Coris swivelled her head in the direction the yell had come from and her hollow eyes blazed with anger. She stormed off toward the direction and came across Jonas, leaning helplessly against a stump. She dropped to her knees next to him, mutilation gone and replaced with the clear complexion of a child that_ looked_ concerned.

"What's wrong Jonas?" Coris asked gently.

Jonas looked at the child and fear overtook his gaze.

"Jonas, come with me, I won't hurt you." Coris replied.

Reluctantly Jonas gave in and nodded. Coris hauled him to his feet by his bad arm and Jonas yelled out into the darkness.

"Sorry." Coris stated and moved to the other side.

She led him to the cliff edge and he looked down. The drop had decreased and now seemed only about a total of fifteen feet into water.

Coris looked at him and smiled, he didn't return the grin, instead, he looked pleadingly over at Sam who was only about two feet away.

"Major, I'm sorry." He whispered out through gritted teeth.

"For what?" Sam asked gently.

"For leading everyone into this, it's my fault."  
"No, Jonas it would've been the same for any of us." Sam stated.

"Don't listen to her Jonas, it _was_ all your fault and now you have to pay for it, I don't need you any longer." Coris snarled.

Jonas felt a sharp shove at his back and before he knew it, the wind was whipping at him. His path wavered and he hit the cliff wall with his right shoulder, causing him to shout out in pain.

After what felt like an eternity of falling, he hit the water with a shout which was cut off almost instantly...

"Jonas!" Sam yelled after him, her words being carried on the howling wind.


	25. Spilling The Tale

**Chapter 25: Spilling the Tale**

Jack saw Coris push Jonas off and he drew in a sharp breath. He sucked in a sharp intake of air when he heard Jonas yell out in what was clearly pain and fright. He made the decision that he couldn't stand by and watch another of his team members killed. What made it worse was that the next head on the chopping block was Sam's.

He increased his speed, running silently to the cliff edge, remaining hidden.

OOO

Sam yelled out to Jonas as she saw him pushed and she turned away sharply when she heard him yell out, followed closely by a splash that cut his shouts off. She gazed into the darkness around her for any sign of Colonel O'Neill and when she saw a sudden movement in the shadows, followed by the glint of his tags she sighed. He was coming.

She turned back and peered over the cliff edge at the 75-foot drop Jonas had just fallen from into dark water. Her eyes were wide with alarm and fright, but she fought it back to avoid appearing frightened and providing Coris with anymore joy than was already present in the child's glowering eyes.

She shivered against the biting wind and wished she had her hands free so she could attempt to warm herself. She swept her gaze around the cliff-top again, just to keep from looking at the cliff edge and recalling what had just happened.

Again the silver tags glinted in the eerie green light covering the entire area and silently willed for the Colonel to hurry.

OOO

Jack shimmied through the shadows until he was no more than five feet away from Sam and the cliff edge. Then he sighed, in front of him, blocking his path for a clear dash to retrieve Sam was a stream. The water trickled through the river bed, cutting him off.

He'd have to jump? No, he couldn't do that, it'd just cause Coris to order Carter shoved over the edge quicker. He slowly backtracked his way to where, he could cross silently, he hadn't had to cross in the first place, why now?

He slipped into the water and it tugged at his legs. It wasn't deep and only reached slightly lower than his knees, making it easier to cross.

He trudged through the stream silently, and pulled himself out on the other side. Good he was on the same side as the soon-to-be execution and he moved closer so he could make his move.

OOO

Sam saw the Colonel's change in direction and her heart jumped into her throat, was he leaving?

Her answer came when she saw the form of O'Neill coming closer to her once again. No, he wasn't leaving, she didn't think he would've anyway.

She tore her gaze from O'Neill and looked everywhere but, at the cliff edge.

"What's wrong Sam?" Coris asked, a hint of a smile in her voice. She knew damned well what was wrong and was using it to torture her.

Sam said nothing.

"Don't worry, you'll be joining him soon enough." Coris said.

"Push her over." Coris said.

"Wait!" Sam called.

"Final words Major?" Coris asked. Sam nodded.

"Tell me this one thing, what is it that you want from us exactly?" Sam asked, maybe if she could stall long enough, Jack would have time to pull off a plan.

"Nothing really, I just need help to destroy my people for what they did for me, now that I have you though, I don't need it. I'll just push you over and then maybe I'll be able to finally rest. You will have taken my place and you'll be the one begging for help to allow you to just sleep, for an eternity. I guess you could say it's an exchange, your life, for my ability to _finally_ rest." Coris stated.

"You don't know if it'll work. I mean you just pushed Jonas over and it looks like you're still here, a restless spirit stuck in eternity." Sam replied, she shot a look to where O'Neill was coming from and saw he was closer, he nodded quietly and continued to come towards them.

"True but, he wasn't intended to take my place. I just needed him to fuel the destruction, but now with you to take my place, I have no more need for him." Coris replied simply.

"How do you know that if I take your place it'll be any different?"

"I don't, but I'm sure it will. You're going through the exact same process as I did before I was pushed. Oh and also, I was told by one of my mentors that it'll work."

"You're dead, and you have _mentors_?"

"Yes, they too are in the same situation as I am."

"Dead?"

Coris nodded and Sam shuddered. The dead were helping the dead, that struck her as a bit strange.

"You make it look as though it scares you." Coris stated.

Sam was silent, it _did_ scare her but, she didn't want to let that out.

"It does doesn't it? You're terrified of death. It really isn't hat bad Samantha, unless of course you're forced to wander the place of your death for an eternity." Coris looked at Sam before pulling a pendant from her pocket.

"You see this?"

Sam nodded, she saw it.

"My mentor gave it to me before I was executed, he said it'd bring me comfort. He said it'd give me reassurance and it'd make my people pay for what they'd done to me." Coris replied, smiling wickedly, she tucked it back into the pocket of her dress.

Sam looked down and saw a glint of gold in her own pocket, a pocket she hadn't known existed until now.

"It's the safe-hold of your power isn't it?" Sam asked, putting two and two together.

"You're smart Sam, smarter then what I'd credited you for. Only, the power will not work without a means of fuel. That's what Jonas was for. That's why he was being affected in ways that you and the others were not. Remember the strange behavior he was sporting?"

Carter nodded silently.

"The people that attacked him in the first place. They were my mentors, they were preparing him to be fuel."

"What'd you do for fuel the first time? Jonas wasn't here then." Sam asked.

"Yes he was, he just didn't know it."

"He didn't even know of this place, how could he have been here?"

"He entered the past when my mentors got at him. You see Sam, there wasn't a first destruction until Jonas stepped through the gate and encountered my mentors."  
"You used him?" Sam exclaimed.

"Ever wonder why when you first sent your probe through the pictures that came back showed nothing but a peaceful planet, and then when you came through it was dark and cold?"

"I remember."

"It was like that _before_ you came through. When you got here everything was thrown off. You see Sam, I was still dead, I'd still been executed, only I had no means of fueling the destruction of my people until you got here."

Sam's eyes grew wide.

"That's right Sam, Jack was the first to see me. He told you and you didn't believe him. I _was_ in your camp that night. I was going to get Jonas myself, until Jack shot at me. Then I sent my mentors after Jonas. I needed him, he was different, I knew he'd believe me and I knew he'd help me. I just didn't know he'd drag all of you into it with him." Coris replied, she was spilling the entire story, it was good because it gave Jack a chance to move in.

"What about Colonel O'Neill?" Sam asked.

"I didn't really need him in the first place, but then he followed Jonas into the forest and he was caught in the process as well. I was going to discard of him, but then I thought _'No, having two means of fuel would work with twice the force of one, so let him join. The destruction will be all the more powerful_."

"What about Teal'c and I? We felt the same effects when we were in the field of Cora plants."

"Yes, the destruction was fueling there as well and caught you two up in it. It wasn't meant to be anyway, so it didn't work as planned."

Coris continued to explain and past the drone of her voice, Sam moved her gaze back to where O'Neill was coming.

OOO

Jack moved in, he caught Sam's gaze and nodded.

_'That's good Carter, keep her talking.' _He thought.

He was mere feet behind Coris when he heard his name, thinking he'd been discovered, he leapt back into the shadows and listened. To his relief he hadn't been discovered, he was just being mentioned in the conversation, under the section titled fuel and unneeded.

"Nice." He whispered to himself as he moved in, he was less than a foot behind Coris when he heard the scatter of rocks beneath his feet. Coris turned around and her eyes were blazing, he'd been discovered...


	26. The Time of Truths

**Chapter 26: The Time of Truths**

Jack cursed out loud; holding nothing back as Coris stared him down. And he had been doing so well. Damn! Well, all good things have to come to an end sooner or later. It may as well have been then.

"Jack? What're you doing?" Coris asked threateningly.

"Uh...me? I'm doing nothing, I swear. I'm being a good little soldier." Jack replied in a sarcastic tone.

Coris continued to stare him down, sending chills up and down his spine. He locked onto her gaze his piercing brown eyes boring into her and not even phasing her where it would've sent a well-trained soldier into alert.

Keeping Coris's gaze, Jack devised a plan. If he could just get that pendant. Oh,he didn't want to go in after it, but if that was what it took to save Sam, he'd go for it. With that thought fresh in his mind he lunged at her, both of them hitting the ground.

Jack reached into the pocket he'd seen Coris drop the pendant in only to find it was gone! He was out of luck there.

"Colonel, Over here!" Sam yelled. Jack looked at her.

"In my front pocket. Hurry!" Sam yelled again.

Jack scrambled off of Coris and took off at a run towards Sam, he heard Coris come after him but, kept going, He plowed through the executioner and plunged his hand into Sam's pocket. There! He felt the coolness of the metal between his fingers and pulled it out.

It was a diamond shape, made of green glass, and the chain was gold.

He threw the pendant down and brought his booted foot down upon it. It smashed under him and released a whirlwind of green into the air, a violent breeze blowing around him.

Coris screamed from behind him in a fit of rage and Jack couldn't help, but smile. He grabbed what was left or the chain and glass and tossed it over the edge.

"Executioner, push her over!" Coris screamed. Jack went into overdrive; he leapt at the executioner and flattened him.

"I don't think so!" Jack yelled.

Suddenly from under him the executioner vanished and he hit the ground. Recovering quickly, he jumped to his feet and put himself between Sam and Coris.

Carter was watching desperately over her shoulder at what was going on and saw Jack put himself behind her.

Coris was advancing, a mutilated and tattered mess, her hands were shaking in the pale light, and she was furious. Jack backed up until he ran into Sam; he could go no further.

Coris stopped then and she jumped at him, Jack felt a cool mist as she hit him and then she was gone, just like that. He felt Sam teeter behind him and thrust his arms around tokeep her from falling and he turned back to her, bending down and releasing her hands. From there he moved to the chain around her ankles, it was broken. And the cuff had been released.

"When you destroyed the pendant, you destroyed her power and that's all that she had left. It must've counteracted everything." Sam stepped back away from the cliff, the blue gown flowing around her, and she was shivering in the night.

"Look at you Carter, you're freezing." Jack replied, shucking off his jacket, and wrapping it about her shoulders. Her shivering slowed as she moved back to the cliff and peered over.

"I can't believe it." She stated, clearly meaning Jonas's shove over the edge.

"Maybe it didn't happen at all." Jack replied, a wishful tone in his voice, he knew very well what had happened.

"Okay, we can wake up any time now!" Jack called into the night. He didn't wake up and he was still standing on the cliff-top.

Sam pulled the Jacket closer and kept her gaze shifted over the cliff into the dark water. She felt a gentle touch on her shoulder, and leaned into it. Jack put his mouth close to here ear.

"Let's go see if we can find him." Were his words. The words were shaky, flooded with sadness and some sort of reserved hope, but she didn't mention it, both of them were hurting at the moment. They were afraid of what might have happened to Jonas. It wasn't something they wanted to face, but it had to be done.

"Okay." She replied quietly, her voice threatening to crack.

* * *

Jonas felt like he was living a dream. Pain seared through his right arm, he was cold, and soaked. Water swirled around him, and he couldn't breathe. He pushed himself to the surface as fast as he could, his lungs burning, his arm protesting.

Before reaching the surface he felt something grab his ankle. Looking down, panic stricken he saw long bony fingers interlaced around his ankle and he couldn't free himself. He looked beyond the hand, and found himself staring into the hollow eyes of a woman, her mouth in a satisfied smile.

"There's no escape for you, Jonas." The mouth spoke. It was Coris's voice, and Jonas struggled against the grip.

He opened his mouth to yell for help and only succeeded in pulling in a mouth full of water. He choked on the cold liquid as it grabbed onto him and he continued to struggle.

Finally he pulled himself free and dashed to the surface. He broke through coughing and choking. Shaking in the chill. He brought his hand up to his temple where a sticky substance claimed his finger tips, he must've hit his head on the way down.

He continued to cough and he tried to pull himself to land. Before reaching it though, a pair of strong hands grabbed him. He felt himself being pulled free of the water and looked up into the night, wondering who had just saved him, and finding no one.

He rubbed at his temple again before giving into the darkness that embraced him.

* * *

He awoke sometime later and felt the hard ground beneath him. He could hear voices coming nearer to him and he recognized them as SG-1. Sam and Jack actually. He wanted to yell out, but couldn't, his voice wouldn't obey, and instead he dragged himself along the ground, too weak to get to his feet.

He'd traveled about a foot when he gave into exhaustion and instead, just waited for his friends to come to him.

"If he's alive, he'll be around here Sir. That is, if he managed to get out of the water." Sam's voice floated to him, through the fogginess of his brain.

"Let's hope that he did." Came Jack's voice.

Branches snapped from near him and he felt the presence of someone draw closer.

* * *

Jack broke through the woods and looked over the riverbank. Jonas couldn't be dead, he couldn't! He continued to search desperately and finally caught sight of a still heap, on the ground ahead.

"Carter, over here!" He shouted, and Sam came running.

* * *

Jonas heard Jack's yell and smiled, he'd been found! The shout was followed by the sound of pounding feet and a figure dropped next to him. He looked up through bleary eyes and was looking into the deep brown eyes of Colonel O'Neill.

"Jonas! You're just like a bad weed, you're impossible to kill, aren't you?" Jack asked, despite the way the words sounded, there was a playful tone inthe Colonel'svoice and Jonas couldn't help, but smile.

"You sound so disappointed." Jonas stated, his voice a raspy whisper in his throat.

"Not at all."

"Is she...?" Jonas asked, meaning Coris.

"She's gone, Jonas and you're going to be fine." Sam replied, moving into his view.

"Let's get out of here and go back to the gate, Teal'c's probably having a fit." Jack replied.

Jonas nodded, and gasped as Jack pulled him to his feet by his right arm.

"Sorry, wrong arm." Jack said.

"Yeah." Jonas replied and allowed himself to be lead away.

* * *

The three members of SG-1 moved slowly into camp, Teal'c, moved from the open gate where he'd been sending a message to the SGC of further..._complications_ and greeted them with a relieved smile.

"It is good to see you are well O'Neill." Teal'c replied, he then looked to Carter who was wrapped in Jack's coat and to Jonas, who was leaning heavily against Jack.

"Oh yeah, peachy." Jack replied, holding the trembling Jonas steady.

"Can we get out of here yet?" Sam asked.

"I do not know Major Carter, I was merely reporting to General Hammond the further complications before I set out to retrieve you." Teal'c stated, lending a hand with Jonas.

"Uh, General?" Jack asked, moving closer to the open gate.

"Colonel O'Neill, is everything all right?" Hammond's voice drifted through the radio to them.

"Oh yeah, peachy keen Sir, we're uh gonna try to come back, if we _do_ succeed we'll need Dr. Fraser and a med. team standing by, Jonas is due for some time in the infirmary." Jack said.

"Very well, I'll call them down. I hope to see you soon, Hammond out." The General's voice was cut off then and the gate remained open.

"Well kids, let's go home." Jack stated moving towards the gate. Before he reached it though, Dr. Jackson appeared out of the night.

"Daniel, hi, thought you weren't gonna leave us on that cliff top all alone. What happened to _that_ plan? It was a good one." Jack asked.

"Yeah about that, sorry, I had some things to attend to." He smiled softly and looked toward Jonas, who was leaning against Jack, head up, looking blearily at him.

"You." Jonas whispered, he knew now who had saved him from certain death and he smiled weakly.

Daniel nodded.

"You should be able to get out of here, give it a try, and I'll see you all again soon. I have to go now." Daniel disappeared into the darkness.

"And he says he's not a ghost..." Jack mused.

"I'm not a ghost, Jack." Came the disembodied voice of Daniel.

"I hate it when he does that, it's seriously freaky."

Teal'c and Jack led Jonas to the shimmering pool of blue and took a deep breath.

"The moment of truth is upon us." Jack said as he stepped through the gate, Jonas in tow. Sam followed him. Hopefully this time would be a charm...


	27. From Darkness to Light

**Chapter 27: From Darkness to Light**

The feeling of the cold gate travel enveloped them but, ended just as quickly as they were once again expelled into the dark world. Landing hard on the ground. Jonas yelped and Jack cringed.

"And now, Darkness is upon us. Again!" Jack shouted in frustration.

He clambered to his feet, hauling Jonas with him and was surprised to come face to face with a group of people. One of which stepped forward, eyes glittering brightly in the night, which had changed somehow. All of a sudden it felt...peaceful, not at all like it had been before.

"I thought we were getting out of here!" Jack called.

"Forgive us for the inconvenience Colonel O'Neill however, there is one more thing we wish to do." The man replied, his voice had a sing-song like manner to it, and was pleasant and friendly.

"Oh no, No more favors! You know what doing a favor got us into the last time?" Jack asked, shooting a look toward a guilty looking Jonas, who hung his head.

"It is not a favor. We just simply wish to thank you and your friends for ridding us of Coris so we may finally rest in peace." The man stated, the others behind him nodded, and there were various smiles dotting the crowd.

"Oh, then you are very welcome. To be truthful that kid gave me the creeps, glad to get rid of her and glad we could be of assistance to you and your people." O'Neill replied.

"Wait...rest in peace? That means..." Jack's voice trailed.

"Yes, we are not of the living world."

"I figured."

"Again, thank you. You have made all of our transitions easier."

"Sure, but we really must be going now, we have injured." Jack replied pleasantly.

"Of course. Your...Stargate will work now, goodbye and, thank you." The man replied before receding back into the crowd. Before the team's eyes, the group vanished, leaving behind the sweet smell of the Coris plants.

"Uh...rest in peace?" Jack tried, tossing it out into the darkness.

Jack looked above, realizing that it was no longer as dark as it had been. Instead a silver moon gazed down on them and was slowly sinking behind the trees and taking its place were the first fingers of dawn, stretching in purple streaks across the sky. He smiled to himself and turned back to the looming gate.

"Now, let's go home." He said and led the way, helping Jonas along. They stepped into the shimmering blue without looking back.

OOO

"Incoming traveler!" Yelled the tech from the computer work station.

General Hammond had been looking down onto the gate room through the glass when this was yelled, and he turned his attention towards the man.

"Is it?" Hammond asked, his thoughts trailing, wondering if it was SG- 1.

"We'll know in a moment sir."

Hammond motioned for the med. team to move in, just in case, and waited apprehensively for the arrival of the travelers.

Mere seconds later, Sam appeared from the event horizon and stepped onto the metal ramp, her bare feet making no sound. She was wrapped tightly in O'Neill's jacket and from beneath the protection, Hammond noticed she wasn't in regulation clothing. Instead, a flowing blue dress followed her and swished over her ankles. The gown was in tatters and in desperate need of a cleaning. It'd be of no use to her any longer.

He moved quickly from the control room to the gate-room and walked in just as Jack and Teal'c came through, supporting a very worn looking Jonas, who was definitely a little worse for the wear.

A cut stretched from beneath his hairline, across his temple and his face was a mass of bruises and scrapes. His right arm looked pretty useless as Jack and Teal'c lowered him onto the stretcher and he had a haunted look in his eyes that made the General uncomfortable.

"Easy Colonel, go easy on him." Fraser stated amidst the ruckus.

"Why does _he_ get off so easy?" Jack whined mockingly, watching Jonas sink into the stretcher.

"Relax Colonel, you'll all have your time with me as soon as I get Jonas fixed up. Be sure you're there huh?" Janet said with a smile.

Jack sighed and made a fake pout, but it was soon replaced with an easygoing smile.

"It is _so_ good to be in a nice lighted place that isn't freezing!" O'Neill replied loudly.

"It sure is Colonel." Sam stated.  
The General surveyed the rest of his pilot team for any obvious injuries. Jack was rubbing at his forehead as though he had a massive headache and he had minor bruises on him, probably resulting from a battle of some type.

Carter seemed fine, aside from the very un-regulatory outfit she was in, and Teal'c looked all right as well. He sighed in relief as Jack broke into another smile.

"Hiya General, did ya miss us?" The Colonel asked, turning to Hammond.

Hammond smiled back, "More than you'll know. You had us worried, it looks like you all can get into some serious trouble when you choose to."

"We _so_ didn't mean to get into as much trouble as we did Sir."

"I'm looking forward to the briefing...I think." Hammond stated, watching Dr. Fraser and the med. team roll Jonas down to the infirmary.

Jack smiled and shrugged innocently as he followed the medical unit out of the room.

"I'm just going to go and uh...change." Sam replied, her cheeks flushing a pale crimson.

"Oh, by all means, go ahead Major." The General replied, watching Sam walk out.

"Teal'c is there anything_ else_ I should know about?" Hammond questioned after Carter was gone.

"I do not believe so General Hammond. I am sure the briefing will tell you all you need to know." Teal'c stated simply.

"Okay, tomorrow 14:00 hours in the conference room. We'll excuse Jonas for the time being, I'll get his side of the story as soon as he recovers. Be sure Major Carter and Colonel O'Neill are aware of the briefing, I'm always up for a good ghost story. See you all then." And with that Hammond left the gate room, Teal'c following close behind.

OOO

Jack walked into the infirmary, Carter and Teal'c following him closely. He saw Jonas sitting up in a bed next to the wall, sporting a gray sling and a bruise over his temple with various other scrapes and bruises on the majority of his face, probably from when he'd been pushed from the cliff. He was holding a book, balancing it on his knees and he looked up with a welcoming smile when his friends entered.

"So, how're you doing?" Jack asked.

"I'm fine Colonel, I suspect the briefing went well?" Jonas replied with a smile as he passed an amused glance over the various emotions on his friend's faces.  
"Oh yeah, went great. Pity you had to miss it." Jack replied from the foot of the bed.

"He didn't believe a word of it did he?" Jonas asked, cluing in.

"He had his doubts...at first, but then he kinda...warmed up to the idea of evil ghosts and possessed planets as we explained everything until our minds were fried." O'Neill answered.

Jonas laughed and set his book aside.

"Jeeze you have some time off and you're spending it...reading?" Jack questioned unbelievingly.

"Yeah, there isn't much else to do."

"I see."

The team was silent for a time until Jack finally broke the silence.

"So, What'd you learn from this past mission Jonas?"

"Never agree to a favor, especially when it's a favor with a ghost." Jonas finalized with a smile.

"My thoughts exactly, unless _I'm _asking you for a favor in which case I expect you to grant it." Jack replied with a smile to show he was joking. He walked to the bedside and hit Jonas purposely, but gently on his slinged arm so as not to hurt him.

The young man paled and drew in a sharp breath.

"Sorry, wrong arm." Jack smirked.

"Yeah." Jonas replied with a grin. "Wrong arm."

**  
The End**


End file.
